HOPKINS, Minn. — A school district here has been featured on local TV news channel KARE 11, for being one of two districts nationwide to try a new Safe Fleet solution that analyzes when a vehicle is likely to illegally pass a stopped school bus.
Hopkins Public Schools is testing out the Predictive Stop-Arm (PSA). Using radar technology and predictive analytics, the Predictive Stop-Arm by Safe Fleet aims to enhance student safety outside the bus, notify bus drivers and students directly when risk is detected, and mitigate driver distraction with reduced false alerts.
Hopkins has been testing this system for a month and plans to continue testing over the course of the next year. Derrick Agate, the district’s transportation supervisor, says he heard of the technology at a conference. Agate also serves as the president of the Minnesota Association of Pupil Transportation.
“Our number one responsibility is to keep the kids safe and this technology helps us to do that,” said Agate. He says this system is more appealing to him than just using cameras on the bus and focusing on drivers who break the law.
He likes that there is an audio warning for the student not to cross the street when the system detects imminent danger.
“We have the video, we have all the information, but more importantly, the child never stepped out into the street, to begin with,” Agate said.
“The school bus industry has been trying to effectively address the School Bus Danger Zone for years,” says Tom Brodsky, VP of the Advanced Technology Group at Safe Fleet.
“The use of mirrors, stop-arms, video surveillance, operator training, public safety announcements, and policies and procedures, have helped increase safety outside the bus. But more must be done if we want to reduce the number of school bus-related injuries and fatalities to zero,” Brodsky continued.
“Innovation at Safe Fleet has created a new approach to this long-standing problem, by means of active alerts to both the school bus drivers and the students themselves, as well as the essential ingredient to the safety solution mix—predictive analytics.”
Safe Fleet will be holding a live demonstration showcasing its Intelligent Perimeter Safety Solutions, including the Predictive Stop-Arm, on Sunday, June 9 at STN EXPO Indy. For more information about this demo, please visit https://try.safefleet.net/stn-indy.
Some of the above content was originally published by KARE 11.
The complete video coverage by KARE 11 on Thursday, April 25, is at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tlcomr0noO4
The article published by KARE 11 on Thursday, April 25, is at:
https://www.kare11.com/article/news/local/kare11-sunrise/hopkins-testing-new-bus-safety-technology/89-6da55538-b6a3-46c3-9f4f-8b32e20c8a6b
About Safe Fleet
Headquartered in Belton, Mo., Safe Fleet owns a portfolio of brands that provide safety and productivity solutions to fleet vehicle manufacturers and operators around the world. These brands serve several major markets, including: Bus, Rail, RV, Truck & Trailer, Work Truck, Law Enforcement, Fire, EMS, Industrial, Construction, Agriculture, Waste/Recycling and Military. With over 1,600 employees and 14 manufacturing locations, Safe Fleet targets markets with increasing demand for operator, passenger and pedestrian safety. www.safefleet.net
About Hopkins Public Schools
Hopkins Public Schools is an award-winning school district with a K-12 population of about 7,200 students, serving the city of Hopkins, most of Minnetonka, about half of Golden Valley, and portions of Eden Prairie, Edina, Plymouth and St. Louis Park. It has six elementary schools, one academy Chinese immersion program, two junior highs and one high school.
