Arlington County to Start Issuing 'Live' Notices Sept. 8 If You Run Bus Stop Sign

Arlington Public Schools’ CrossingGuard® School Bus Stop Arm Safety Camera Program is underway.

Cameras are capturing images of vehicles that fail to stop for an extended school bus stop arm. Arlington County is one of the first communities in Virginia to approve the use of exterior school bus cameras.

“Our main goal is to keep our students safe,” said Dave McCrae, Director of Transportation, said in a news release earlier this summer. “These cameras are the safety solution we need to protect our students and to reduce the number of these types of violations.”

During the first two months of the program (July 8-Sept. 7) a warning notice will be issued to the vehicle’s owner. The warning period is scheduled during summer school and live notices will start being issued on Tuesday, Sept. 8 when the school year begins.

“The warning period will give our residents an opportunity to familiarize themselves with the public safety goals of the program before the actual citations begin,” said APS Security Coordinator Kevin Reardon. “The goal of this public safety program is to stop drivers from disobeying the stop arm, ensuring our students get to and from school safely.”

The CrossingGuard® school bus arm safety solution mounts cameras and sensors on the side of the school bus. When the stop arm is deployed, the sensors automatically detect a vehicle illegally passing the stop arm in either direction or captures video of the violation including the vehicle’s license plate. The video is then reviewed by the Arlington County Police Department for approval prior to a citation being issued. In Virginia, the penalty for a stop-arm violation will warrant the vehicle’s owner a civil penalty of $250. Arlington is the second community in Virginia and the largest school division to approve the use of exterior school bus cameras.

APS operates 165 buses that transport about 10,000 students to and from school each week. “Our goal is to educate drivers and stop the illegal passing of school buses,” said M. Jay Farr, Chief of Police for Arlington County. “Our number one priority is to protect our citizens. We are proud to have this additional tool to help keep our children safe.”An FAQ about the program and Virginia traffic laws pertaining to school bus stop arms is available on the APS website at www.apsva.us/stoparmcameras.