CARROLL COUNTY, Ga. — Drivers who illegally pass a stopped school bus here could receive a violation notice due to high-resolution cameras on Carroll County Schools’ buses that went live on Monday.

Carroll County Schools has installed the cameras from American Traffic Solutions on the front and rear driver’s side of school buses to capture motorists who illegally drive by stopped school buses while their stop arm is extended and schoolchildren are boarding or disembarking the bus. When the stop arm is deployed, the system detects if a vehicle passes the bus within the enforcement zone. 

“Too many drivers choose to ignore the school bus stop arm and think it is acceptable to pass when children are unloading and loading,” said Jackie Coffee, director of transportation for Carroll County Schools. “With this program, we hope to significantly reduce the number of these types of violations, which will increase the overall safety of our students.”

The Carroll County Sheriff’s Office is working together with Carroll County Schools by reviewing violation video and license plate images for final approval prior to a citation being issued. In Georgia, the penalty for a violation will warrant the vehicle’s owner a $300 fine for the first violation, a $750 fine for the second, and a third violation in a five-year period will result in a $1,000 fine. 

“This program enhances our enforcement abilities while freeing up police resources to focus on other areas,” Sheriff Terry Langley said. “It’s another way for us to protect the lives of the children who ride a school bus to and from school every day.”

The program is administered and maintained by American Traffic Solutions at no cost to Carroll County Schools.

Company officials said that Carrollton City Schools and Newton County Schools, both in Georgia, also went live with American Traffic Solutions' system on Monday.  

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● Safety Vision, Blue Bird partner to sell stop-arm camera