Bill Pre-filed to Put Cameras on School Bus Stop Arms

The stop arms on school buses in Kentucky have been around for at least 30 or more years. However, some drivers continue to ignore what is essentially a safeguard for kids getting to and from school. Save for emergency vehicles, it is illegal to pass a school bus. 

A bill has been pre-filed in the Kentucky legislature to finally hold drivers accountable for their actions, cameras on the stop arms.

Republican State Representative Robert Goforth from Laurel County pre-filed BR 136 that would require installation of stop-arm cameras on all Kentucky school buses by August 1, 2023. The law would impose a $200 fine on a first offense and $500 for a second or further offense within a three-year period. The cameras would not only capture an image of the violation but compiling and submitting evidence easier.

National statistics show over 20 percent of school bus drivers in 38 states, plus D.C. found that nearly 84,000 vehicles passed over 100,000 buses on a single day in 2018. In Kentucky, the statistics show that illegally passing school buses is a problem in every district in every county.