In an effort to keep students safe from motorists as they board and exit their school buses, the School District of Lee County will be placing cameras on the outsides of school buses.
The school board recently gave the district the nod to work with a company called BusPatrol for the technology and services.
In the coming weeks or months, BusPatrol will place cameras on the stop arms of the school district's 900 buses. The cameras will be able to capture the license plates of vehicles that illegally pass a stopped bus and provide the video to law enforcement for review. Drivers who illegally pass a bus will be fined $225. The money will help fund the program.
If recent surveys are any indication, then the school district could be in for a windfall.
For the past couple of years, the Florida Department of Education has been asking bus drivers to count the number of illegal bus passings in a single day.
In Lee County last year, there were 912 such cases. The previous two years weren’t much better with more than 800 incidents counted in each year’s sampling, said school district spokesman Rob Spicker.
“That's a lot of risk that can be avoided simply by drivers obeying the rules, following the law, and staying behind our buses when the lights are flashing and the arm is extended,” Spicker said.
In 2023, the Florida Legislature passed a law allowing for the enforcement of school bus passing infractions. This law allows school districts to install infraction detection systems on school buses to document when a vehicle violates the law by passing a bus when its stop arm is out. The cameras cannot be used for any other purpose.
With the school board’s blessing Tuesday, the school district will enter into agreements with BusPatrol. After cameras are installed, there will be a 30-day warning period and public awareness campaign giving motorists ample time to understand what’s going on.
Though the official 30 days doesn’t kick off until the cameras are installed and the system is working, Spicker had this to say: “School starts Aug. 11, so be on the lookout for our students and our buses. But then be prepared later this fall for a campaign that could get you a ticket for $225 if you illegally pass a bus when the red lights are flashing and the stop arm is extended.”
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