More Cameras Watching Triad Drivers

Today, smile as you drive past a stopped school bus with lights flashing. You just might get your picture taken.

It's the first day of school and school buses are out in force. Some are armed with external cameras in an effort to keep children safe while getting on and off the bus. Theo Helm is Director of Marketing and Communication for Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools. He says the district has outfitted about half a dozen more buses with stop arm camera's. “They capture the license plate information, get a good look at the driver as they pass the bus, as well as front and back shots of the car,” explains Helm.
 
Last year near Kernersville, East Forsyth Middle School student Hasani Wesley died after being hit by a sport-utility vehicle while trying to cross the road to get on a school bus. The 11-year-old was in the sixth grade. According to the N.C. Highway Patrol, the stopped bus had on its flashing lights and the stop-arm was extended. Under a new state law named after Wesley, drivers will pay a minimum fine of $500 for violating school bus stop-arm laws. Drivers who injure or kill someone will pay higher fines. Repeat offenders could lose their license.

During the 2012-2013 academic year, five students were also hit and injured by drivers at bus stops in Forsyth and Guilford Counties. An annual study conducted by North Carolina State University's Institute for Transportation Research and Education found that 3,200 cars illegally passed stopped buses during the study's one-day count on March 21, 2013. That translates to 576,000 vehicles statewide for a 180-day school year.