BLUE SPRINGS, Mo. — School is almost back in session. Soon the streets will be flooded with school buses loaded with precious cargo. On Monday the Blue Springs School District unveiled a new safety feature that might have drivers stopping in their tracks.
When a stop sign is attached to a big yellow school bus, traffic in both directions should stop. But that’s not always the case.
“Once last year, I freaked out because I was about to get on the bus and a car nearly flew by and I was almost in the middle of the road,” says Terra Culbertson, a frequent bus rider.
Culbertson started riding the bus to school as soon as she was old enough. She’s no stranger to those close calls.
“I’ve seen it happen a lot on the road I used to live on,” she says.
Those violations have not gone unnoticed. The Blue Springs School District installed stop arm cameras on the outside of their buses to catch offenders in the act.
“We’ve spent $98,000 this year. We have three more years to do that so nearly $400,000 just in camera upgrades,” says Steve Brown, the school’s department of transportation director.
There are cameras on 30 buses. The rest will be installed over the next three years. Priority goes to the routes with most complaints.
“The buses we had some concerns with were some routes that we’ve had some issues of people crossing on the stop arms, so we’re getting those done first,” Brown says.
If a driver ignores the stop sign, the camera will take a picture of the care and license place number. The driver will then face consequences.
“The first year we just want to notify everybody. They’re going to be aware of it. After that, especially those that we catch more than one time, two or three times a year, they’re going to be ticketed,” says Tom Philiips, the school’s public safety executive director.
All those upgrades have Culbertson hopeful that the law might be upheld.
“I think it’s a good thing. People need to let kindergartners get on the bus,” she says.