Monroe Co. records over 3,500 violations since installation of school bus cameras

HENRIETTA, N.Y. (WROC) — School districts across Monroe County continue the call on drivers to stop for a stopped school bus.

It’s part of an ‘Operation Safe Stop,’ a nationwide campaign held each year.

Back in October, Hilton Central Schools became the first district in our area to install stop-arm safety cameras with a company called BusPatrol.

Since then, more than 3,500 citations have been recorded in participating districts for drivers who failed to stop for a stopped bus.

Monroe County leaders are hopeful those situations won’t occur with the stop-arm cameras installed to various school districts’ fleets.

“I was alarmed. Over 3,000 citations in just six months from just a handful of our school districts in Monroe County. We should all be alarmed by that statistic. This is a pervasive problem throughout our community,” said Monroe Co. Executive Adam Bello.

Among the districts taking part in this partnership are Hilton, East Irondequoit, Webster, Greece and Monroe One BOCES.

Greece Central Schools has seen an average of 50 violations per day since installing the cameras in March.

“We are continuing to see motorists run the reds of our school buses and putting our students’ and staffs’ lives in danger,” said Greece CSD transportation director Dave Richardson, “I get weekly reports to see just how many citations there have been since the previous weeks’ report. We can also see the frequencies of where these violations are occurring, and perhaps change our routing and our bus stops to move away from these high danger areas to provide that extra layer of support to our students.”

Leaders say the goal is to continue to hold more drivers accountable. First-time offenders will receive a $250 fine which will increase with further violations.

“My message to the community is slow down, be patient, and recognize these children getting on and off the school bus are the most vulnerable members of our community,” said Bello.

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