Salem Joins Peabody In School Bus Safety Push Using Cameras

SALEM, MA — Salem is set to become the second North Shore city to implement a school bus camera pilot program designed to monitor the instances of drivers passing buses stopped to pick up or drop off students.

Salem will join Peabody in partnering with BusPatrol to chronicle the extent of the issue in that city. In Salem, the entire bus fleet will be equipped with AI-powered cameras to capture video and data to document illegal passing.

A recent release of data from a BusPatrol camera pilot program in Peabody revealed that the
the company recorded 3,412 vehicles failing to stop for 10 camera-equipped buses that were stopped for students between Sept. 5 and May 9.

(Also on Patch: Peabody School Bus Stop Safety Data Shows Rampant Driver Violations)

S.T.O.P the Operator Passing founder Maria Scheri told Patch last week that based on that data concerned parents across the state have to "speak up to hold drivers accountable."

Salem Mayor Dominick Pangallo said the pilot program will help shape enforcement strategies by the police as the city is "committed to advancing the Vision Zero goals for safe roadways for all, and especially for students and children."

"Ultimately, our hope is the Commonwealth will give communities more flexibility in using these tools for enforcement, not just studies," he said.

Currently, police are only allowed to cite drivers if there is visual evidence of a violation. A proposed state law would allow camera footage similar to that being collected on the stop-arms of buses through BusPatrol to be used to issue tickets. Camera use for ticketing is allowed in 27 states but the proposal in Massachusetts has languished at the State House for the better part of a decade.

"We're very excited to partner with BusPatrol to advance the safety of our students as they travel to and from our schools," Salem Superintendent Steve Zrike said. "We feel each member of our staff is an educator, which includes our drivers. Salem Public Schools supports the use of school bus stop-arm cameras and House Bill 4450. This legislation would empower our drivers to keep our students even safer as they commute between home and school."

The Peabody School Committee voted to implement the pilot program last spring after multiple incidents early last school year when students were injured when drivers failed to stop for buses. Mayor Ted Bettencourt also formed the School Safety Task Force, of which Scheri is the co-chair.

BusPatrol said the Peabody data gathered over nine months equated to 2.3 illegal passes per day for those 10 buses and that extrapolated over the whole 30-bus fleet would equal more than 10,000 violations over the course of the school year.

BusPatrol said those rates are among the highest it has recorded nationwide and was at its worst in Peabody during the first month of the school year.

"Stop means stop," Scheri said. "It could save a life."

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. X/Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)