Connecticut installing cameras on school buses to catch drivers who illegally pass
Close-up of a camera attached to a school bus. (Credit: Steve Pfost/Newsday RM via Getty Images)
NEW HAVEN, Connect. - Several Connecticut communities are turning to AI-powered cameras on school buses to catch drivers who illegally pass buses with their warning lights flashing and stop arms extended.
Connecticut installing cameras on school buses
Big picture view:
More than a half-dozen towns, including New Haven, Bridgeport and Vernon, have partnered with BusPatrol to install the cameras on their school bus fleets.
In New Haven, cameras installed on more than 300 buses earlier this year have already recorded about 12,000 incidents. Meanwhile, Vernon caught nearly 100 drivers in just the first three days of its program.
Laws for passing school buses in Connecticut
Dig deeper:
It’s been illegal to pass a stopped school bus for decades in Connecticut, but state and local officials have struggled with enforcement. Each year, thousands of people drive past stopped school buses.
According to the State Department of Transportation, the technology is designed to address a persistent safety problem. Connecticut has recorded 12 deaths and 23 serious injuries involving school buses over the past six years, DOT said. The department did not say how many of those incidents involved motorists passing buses with their red lights flashing.
State law allows video captured by cameras to be used as evidence, and municipalities can impose fines for violations caught on camera. A first-time violation caught by a camera carries a $250 fine.
Marc Petruzzi, the chief of police in Vernon – which announced its rollout last month – said the town installed the cameras to avoid future tragedies.
"Passing a stopped school bus is one of the most dangerous things that a driver can do," he said at a press conference announcing the initiative.
Growing concerns among residents about license plate readers
The backstory:
The cameras come as Connecticut faces growing scrutiny over automated license plate readers. Municipalities across the state have installed hundreds of the devices, prompting residents to question how the technology is used and who can access the data.
Connecticut has rapidly become the state with the most ALPR cameras per capita in New England, according to DeFlock, which tracks ALPR installations. Municipalities and businesses across the state have installed nearly 800 ALPRs to date.
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Gov. Ned Lamont recently called for a 30-day pause on new automated license plate readers while state officials develop guidance on data retention and sharing. That pause does not specifically include cameras mounted on school buses.
Connecticut lawmakers have established penalties for passing a school bus at several hundred dollars per offense. In 2011, the state allowed local police and school districts to install cameras on buses to record incidents and to use that evidence against motorists accused of illegally passing a bus. It set the fine for a first-time violation — regardless of whether it was caught on camera — at $450.
In 2024, lawmakers updated the statute to give municipalities the power to authorize video monitoring system via ordinance, and it set the fine for first-time violations caught on camera at $250. The fine for violations caught by officers in-person is still $450.
BusPatrol said its cameras are different from continuously operating license plate readers like those operated by the company Flock Safety because they only activate when a bus is stopped with its warning lights and the stop arm is engaged. The company said the footage is retained only as long as needed for law enforcement review or required by law, and is then deleted once a citation is resolved.
The Source: This story was reported from Los Angeles. The Associated Press contributed.