Santa Rosa County, FL (August 27, 2021) – Santa Rosa County District Schools is working with safety technology company BusPatrol to improve road safety for students this back-to-school season. The district has embarked on a pilot program, equipping five of its buses with AI-powered stop-arm cameras to deter drivers from illegally passing stopped school buses.
“We are excited to introduce this technology into the school district to provide a safer environment for our students at the bus stops,” said Travis Fulton, Director of Purchasing and Contract Administration for Santa Rosa County District Schools.
Santa Rosa County District Schools believe this pilot program will highlight the need for better enforcement of school bus safety laws in the state. Results from the trial program will be used to campaign for legislation to authorize the use of automated stop-arm cameras throughout Florida. This will provide valuable data including where and when violations are most likely to occur. The school district will be able to use the results to make data-driven decisions and share this information with law enforcement to improve enforcement at ‘violation hotspots.’
“Changing legislation around school bus safety technology in Florida is the first step to improving driver behavior around school buses,” said Jean Souliere, CEO and Founder at BusPatrol. “The results from this pilot program will be crucial in our campaign for better legislation and better technology to make roads safer for children as they journey to school.”
According to reports from the Florida Department of Education, in one day more than 10,000 drivers in Florida unlawfully blow past stopped school buses putting children at risk. And drivers show little sign of correcting this behavior, with almost a third (28%) of local drivers admitting to cutting off a school bus because it was moving too slowly in a recent AAA survey.