BALTIMORE COUNTY, Md. — School buses carry precious cargo: your children. A new program aims to get kids to and from school safely in Baltimore County. They’ve installed new cameras outside all school buses that transport 80,000 county students.
“Each year we hear horrifying stories of cars that pass by buses at alarmingly high rates of speeds,” says Dr. Myriam Rogers, Baltimore County Public Schools Superintendent, “This is simply unacceptable.”
A limited number of school buses had external cameras. Now, every school bus, including contractor buses, has them.
“It takes every single one of us doing our part to keep our children safe as they walk to school, cross our roadways, and get on and off our school buses,” Rogers says.
The Baltimore County Police Department did a survey a year ago and the results were alarming. In one day, they observed more than 380 cars illegally pass school buses on county roads, says police Chief Robert McCullough.
“When we did the study, it was even surprising to me that it was that many in a day, and I've been around for quite a while,” he says.
Starting today and for the next 30 days, you'll get a warning. After that, you'll get a $250 citation. County police will verify the ticket before it goes in the mail.
