‘Cameras have consequences’: Polk County to launch stop arm camera program on school buses
POLK COUNTY, Fla. (WFLA) – This spring, an accused drunk driver hit a child getting off a school bus in Haines City, according to the Polk County Sheriff’s Office.
That child was not seriously injured.
In a one-day count conducted May 1st by Polk County Public Schools, 700 school bus safety law violations were recorded.
In April of 2023, the school district observed 1,039 stop arm violations in one day.
“With children on school buses and people running that stop sign, there’s going to be zero tolerance,” said Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd.
Sheriff Judd said he does not typically support automated traffic cameras (i.e. red light cameras).
He prefers citations be given face-to-face, with the opportunity to give a warning instead of a ticket.
“I’ve left my comfort zone but children are worth it. We’ve got to have people stop whenever these buses are stopped. That’s the problem, they aren’t,” said Sheriff Judd.
His office will work with Polk County Public Schools on the district’s new bus camera program.
By next school year, all of the county’s more than 500 school buses will have stop arm cameras.
“Based on the data we have, Florida is the second most dangerous state in the US for school zone safety,” said Jon Baldwin, executive vice president for government solutions at Verra Mobility, an Arizona-based automated enforcement company.
Gov. Ron DeSantis signed HB 741 into law last year which empowered school districts and law enforcement agencies to do more to enforce school bus safety laws.
After it became law, Polk County Public Schools underwent a lengthy vetting process before deciding on a contract with Verra Mobility, an Arizona-based global automated enforcement company.
Per Verra Mobility’s contract with the school district, the company will cover all costs for the cameras, including installation, maintenance, and operation.
It then gets $49 of every $225 fine.
The cameras operate similarly to red light cameras, in that they detect when a vehicle does not stop when a stop arm is extended.
“That’s the sad truth about these automated enforcement programs is that there are so many violators that they do pay for themselves. Now, if they don’t, then that kind of means we won,” said Verra Mobility’s Matthew Reich during a presentation to school board members in April.
According to the company, it issued 200,000 citations from its 75 stop arm programs across the country last year.
Polk County will be the company’s first stop arm program in Florida.
“We anticipate that we will issue a lot of citations in the beginning and then people will figure out, hey, this is for real and those school buses do have cameras, and cameras have consequences,” said Sheriff Judd.
When the camera detects a violation, the company will send an evidence package to the Polk County Sheriff’s Office.
Once a deputy approves the violation, a citation will be sent to the owner of the vehicle observed violating the law.
The school district will compensate the sheriff’s office for the time spent reviewing the violations.
The goal is to install all the cameras over the summer and have them operational by the upcoming school year.
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