Peabody Public Schools today released alarming new data from its school bus stop-arm camera pilot program, which is being conducted in partnership with BusPatrol. The pilot is the first of its kind in the state and reveals a disturbing trend of motorists disregarding school bus stop-signs and endangering students.
From September 5, 2023, to May 9, 2024, 10 school buses equipped with AI-powered stop-arm cameras recorded 3,412 vehicles failing to stop for school buses that were stopped to pick up or drop off students. This equates to 2.3 illegal passes per bus per day—one of the highest rates recorded nationwide. This equates to more than 10,000 violations if extrapolated across the entire 30-bus fleet.
The first full week of back-to-school, September 11-15, was the most dangerous for students, with 184 incidents of illegal passing, equal to 3.8 per bus per day.
“Parents in Massachusetts need to be aware that illegal school bus passing violations are happening in every city and town,” said Maria Scheri, a concerned parent and founder of S.T.O.P the Operator Passing, an advocacy group campaigning for student transportation safety. “If your child takes the bus to school, there is a good chance that someone is going to be blowing past the red flashing lights and stop sign at some point. State lawmakers need to pay attention to what is happening.”
A bill (H.4450) in the Massachusetts legislature that would allow school districts, in partnership with law enforcement, to operate stop-arm-enforced camera systems to address illegal school bus passings has been reported favorably by the Joint Committee on Transportation and referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means. This legislation comes after years of advocacy from Massachusetts communities and supporters who have raised concerns about an alarming surge in reckless motorist behavior around school buses.
At least 27 states, including Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, and Maine, have legalized school bus stop-arm enforcement programs.
Without a fix to Massachusetts state law, local police departments and sheriff’s offices are unable to leverage photo enforcement technology to ticket motorists who break the law and fail to stop. The district hopes the findings from this stop-arm survey will serve as a compelling case for passing laws that allow for more effective enforcement measures in Massachusetts.
Each year, thousands of children are needlessly put at risk due to reckless and illegal driver behavior around school buses, which can have fatal and tragic consequences. According to the National Association of State Directors of Pupil Transportation Services, school buses are passed over 43 million times per year in the United States.