Neighbor News
Stop-Arm Scam
Camera makers are trying to sell schools stop-arm cameras to fleece drivers
Drivers Beware!
Another anti-driver idea to ticket safe drivers involves automated school bus stop-arm cameras (SB 1098), which ticket drivers who illegally pass stopped school buses. Ticket Trap Bill SB 1098 should be voted down.
School bus transportation is safer than ever, and illegal passing rarely causes student deaths. Today, bus drivers can report illegal passing, and there are in-bus surveillance cameras, which can be shown to police. Companies make stop-arm extenders that block the next lane, as well as extra stop-arms.
Find out what's happening in Tredyffrin-Easttownfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Many roadway configurations are confusing, so it is not always obvious when you need to stop, you may not see the school bus, and may not be able to safely stop. You may be nowhere near a school bus, but still be required to stop. In addition, state law requires stopping when a school bus is on an intersecting road, which should be immediately repealed. Who will reject the tickets for divided roads, whereby you are allowed to proceed as normal? To further confuse things, Erie uses blue transit buses, which do not look like a school bus.
These are real tickets. One problem is that the driver is not identified and assumed to be the vehicle’s owner. There is not even a minimal amount of flashing yellow light time mandated. Certain roads should have longer yellows, too. These will likely be split-second tickets for being near a school bus. What if you stop too closely?
Find out what's happening in Tredyffrin-Easttownfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Add school bus stop-arm cameras to the list of red-light cameras, speed cameras, and municipal police radar as predatory devices to steal safe drivers’ money. Time tested solutions like best-practice highway engineering will solve safety problems on roads and intersections. Enforcement should be reserved for the less than 5% of drives actually causing accidents and unsafe conditions, not used as a general revenue enhancer for government and the special interests.
Contact your Pennsylvania Senator, Representative, and the Governor Wolfe and say no more anti-driver legislation in Pennsylvania. Thank you.
Sincerely,
Tom McCarey Member, National Motorists Association
The opinions expressed in this letter belong to the author and do not necessarily represent those of the NMA or the NMA Foundation
