KINGSTON – The Ulster County Legislature Tuesday evening adopted a local law establishing a countywide school bus stop-arm safety camera program.
“Illegal passings of stopped school buses occur on an almost routine basis, endangering the lives of children crossing the street to and from the bus,” said County Executive Jen Metzger.
Legislator Debra Clinton, chairwoman of the Law Enforcement and Public Safety Committee, said stop-arm cameras are “a practical, proven way” to increase student safety.
“I believe we have an obligation to use every tool available to keep our students safe, and we can tell that this does change driver behavior as there is a reduced number of repeat offenders after they have received a ticket,” she said. “It does raise awareness and ultimately improves the safety for all students who rely on school buses each day.”
School districts can opt in to the program through an intermunicipal agreement with the county.
Potential violations captured by the camera systems will first be reviewed by vendor BusPatrol, and an evidence package will then be sent to a technician with law enforcement experience in the county Department of Emergency Services, who will make the final determination on issuing a violation.
For the first 30 days of the program, only warnings will be issued to drivers, thereafter fines will be issued for violations. No points will be added to drivers’ licenses.
The program involves no out-of-pocket costs for the county.
Orange County implemented a similar program a couple of years ago.
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