30-day warning period begins 

Watervliet City Schools has partnered with BusPatrol and the City of Watervliet to launch a new school bus stop-arm photo enforcement program aimed at reducing the number of drivers who illegally pass stopped school buses. This proactive effort will help combat reckless driving around school buses and protect students who ride buses to and from school.

Every bus in the district’s fleet, including contracted buses, will be equipped with the most advanced bus stop-arm cameras available. This technology utilizes artificial intelligence to detect cars that illegally pass stopped school buses.

For the first 30 days — from May 20 through June 19 — only warning violations with no monetary penalty will be mailed to vehicle owners whose cars are observed illegally passing a stopped school bus. Live ticketing will begin on June 20, 2024 for violations.

State law requires that motorists stop at least 20 feet away from a stopped school bus with its red lights flashing and stop-arm deployed.

As per New York State, the penalty for breaking the law as captured by the school bus stop-arm camera is assigned to the vehicle owner, and it comes with a minimum civil penalty of $250. Driver’s license points or insurance rates cannot be affected through the stop-arm camera civil enforcement.

Each year, thousands of children are put at risk due to reckless and illegal driver behavior around school buses, which can have fatal and tragic consequences. According to the Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee, school buses are illegally passed 50,000 times each day in New York State.