The South Colonie Central School District announced today plans to begin installation of stop arm cameras before the start of the 2022-23 school year.
The new cameras, which are expected to be installed on the entire fleet of school buses, offers technology to help crack down on those driving by stopped buses illegally.
South Colonie is working with BusPatrol America LLC and Albany County to implement the program.
BusPatrol has committed to installing cameras, sensors, and the company’s technology on the outside of all South Colonie school buses to detect drivers and record their license plate information when they unlawfully pass a stopped bus. The technology will be installed at no cost to the district or the county with 60 percent of the proceeds from ticket revenue going to BusPatrol directly.
“We are the first district in the Capital Region to move forward with this innovative technology,” said Transportation Director Peter Tunny in a statement on the district website. “We know how dangerous it can be for our students when drivers go around school buses when they are stopped and we are hoping that this step will encourage drivers on the road to be more considerate of their actions in regards to the children in our community.”
South Colonie will begin installation on Sept. 6 with plans to be fully installed by the end of September.
