LONDON, Ky. (LEX 18) — Laurel County Schools is adding a new tool to keep students safe this upcoming year.
They added stop-arm cameras to their 107 buses.
The bus stop can be a dangerous place.
“It’s a scary thing, you have your arm deployed to let a child off the bus, and someone continues to drive fast,” said Rob Hale, the district’s transportation director, and a former bus driver.
He recalled when, as a driver, cars would illegally pass his bus while picking up and dropping off students.
Other drivers are supposed to stop when the stop arm comes out, but he says many don’t. Laurel County’s bus drivers report, on average, eight stop arm violations per week.
The issue is, those violations don’t translate to anything happening to those drivers who pass the buses.
“It’s the bus driver's word against the driver's word,” said school police chief Dan Smoot. It’s the reason they are adding the cameras.
“We're hopeful that digital evidence will be enough to prosecute those who violate the law,” Smoot said.
Hale said drivers put children crossing the street in danger when they ignore stop arms.
