DECATUR, Ga. — City Schools of Decatur will soon become the 12th school district in Georgia to partner with American Traffic Solutions (ATS) to deploy CrossingGuard®, ATS’ technology to help school districts address the growing problem of illegal passing of school buses that are stopped and boarding or disembarking children.
In conjunction with the start of the program, the schools, police department and ATS have also released a video Public Service Announcement (PSA) to help educate the community about this important student safety initiative. The video that can be viewed here explains how the CrossingGuard® school bus stop arm safety solution works. It also highlights the role of law enforcement, the penalties issued, and the importance of school bus safety.
“Our priority is keeping students as safe as possible going to and from school,” said Dr. Phyllis Edwards, Superintendent of the City Schools of Decatur.
CrossingGuard® is a completely automated, turnkey system that allows school bus drivers to focus on what is most important — the safety of their passengers. External cameras capture an image of a vehicle’s license plate and a brief video clip of the entire violation event. To date, more than 99 percent of the drivers who have received a school bus stop arm violation from a CrossingGuard® camera, have not received a second. This high rate of compliance indicates a positive change in driver behavior.
In Georgia, the penalty for a stop-arm violation will warrant the vehicle’s owner a $300 fine for the first violation, a $750 fine for the second, and a third violation in a five-year period will result in a $1,000 fine.
“We are excited to partner the City of Decatur Police Department with the City Schools of Decatur and American Traffic Solutions to better protect our most valued treasure, Decatur’s children,” said Police Chief Mike Booker. “We hope this program will foster greater awareness in the community about safe and legal driving practices.”
The cameras are scheduled to be operational when school resumes.
About American Traffic Solutions
ATS has nearly 3,500 installed red-light, speed and school bus stop arm safety cameras serving more than 30 million people. ATS is the largest school bus camera service provider in Georgia with contracts in Carroll County, Carrollton City, Clarke County, Clayton County, Cobb County, Douglas County, Houston County, Muscogee County, Newton County, Paulding County, and the Marietta City Schools District. For more information, visit www.atscrossingguard.com.
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