Monroe adds stop arm cameras to school buses

Rochester, New York – By having stop-arm cameras installed on the buses, on Thursday, Monroe County Executive Adam Bello announced that he signed new legislation to further protect children on school buses.

According to Bello, the cameras are meant to take pictures of vehicles illegally passing stopped school buses. The Monroe County Department of Public Safety would review the photo before a ticket gets sent to the vehicle owner.

The violations will increase with each offense that occurs within 18 months: $250 for a first violation, $275 for a second violation, and $300 for each violation afterward, Monroe County officials explained.

School districts can opt into an agreement with Monroe County to get these cameras installed on their buses at no additional cost, Bello also added.

“I encourage all school districts throughout Monroe County to take advantage of this free program for their students,” Bello said. “Thank you to my colleagues in the Monroe County Legislature for prioritizing our children’s safety.”

Previously, Motorists could only be issued a ticket if caught by a police officer, before this legislation was signed. Some people, like Dr. Kasey Kosiorek, the president of the Monroe County Council of Superintendents, believe this is progress toward preventing a tragedy.

“An average of 19 school-age passengers are killed during the loading and unloading of transportation,” Dr. Kosiorek explained. “This legislation is going to support making sure this doesn’t happen in the future.”