School Bus Cameras Pitched In Hatboro-Horsham

HATBORO / HORSHAM TOWNSHIP, PA —With other school districts arming buses with cameras to capture drivers speeding by during stops in Montgomery County and the Philadelphia region, the Hatboro-Horsham School District is also discussing similar safety measures.

During its meeting last week, the Hatboro-Horsham School Board considered a contract to add stop-arm cameras to all school buses. The board is expected to vote on the issue at its next meeting.

Abington and Cheltenham townships are among the eastern Montgomery County school districts to outfit their buses with cameras. Several school districts in nearby Bucks County, such as Bensalem, also have the cameras on school buses.

Arming all 46 buses would cost $138,000, but school officials said the installation costs would be picked up by Bus Patrol, which outfits school bus fleets with the latest stop-arm safety technology, including stop-arm cameras, DVR, and storage devices, interior cameras, GPS, telemetry, and LTE connectivity.

The cameras are activated when the stop arm of the bus is extended as children get on and off the bus. They capture video of vehicles illegally passing the bus and endangering those children.

The videos of vehicles disregarding the stop arm and flashing red lights would be forwarded to the Hatboro and Horsham Township police departments. The district would need agreements with both before installing the cameras.

When a vehicle is captured on camera, police could then issue violations where warranted.

Schools Superintendent Scott Eveslage said at first didn't believe that there would be enough violations for the program, but the district’s bus drivers and other school districts adding the bus cameras changed his thinking.