As Business Manager, your job duties may also include those of Risk Manager and Facilities Manager. And with those responsibilities comes the never-ending duty of ensuring student safety at all times—on and off campus.
The best risk management is always to have a robust injury prevention plan in place as part of your overall risk management protocol. Technology is making safety in the 21st century both easier and trickier, but regarding bus safety, a new pilot program in Southington, CT, is pushing for technology to make kids’ lives safer.
Beginning in mid-March, four or five buses in the Southington school district will be equipped with RedFlex Traffic Safety cameras for 60 days to collect data. These cameras will be attempting to capture cars passing standing school buses as well as other careless motorist actions. During the testing period, citations will not be issued; instead, data will be collected to determine the frequency of violations.
Since the start of the 2011-2012 school year, the Southington police force says they have issued approximately a dozen citations. Police dispatchers say they receive complaints from parents “all the time.”
In 2011, Connecticut state officials revised legislation in an effort to give school districts and Board of Education entities more oversight in providing safe transportation to and from school. Without cameras, police must witness violators, which would call for more police staffed along bus routes instead of on patrol, or would require bus drivers to report incidents along with license plate identification, which is not always possible for a bus driver to obtain.
These new cameras are designed to start recording each time the bus driver opens the “stop arm” and continue recording until the arm is closed. Video will be transmitted to RedFlex each day, and from there, violations will be forwarded to the police department for further review. After the police determine how many citations they can issue, they will report back to both the school district and RedFlex.
“In today’s world, we have embraced technology in almost every aspect of our lives and I am pleased that we will pilot this high-tech program pertaining to bus safety,” Superintendent Joseph V. Eradi, Jr. said.
Other articles of interest:
Keeping Kids Safe At School Bus Stops a ‘Daily Battle’
NTSB Investigating Fatal Burlco School Bus-Truck Crash
Mom Says 'Loophole' In School Bus Safety Law Led To Her Daughter's Death
Additional ISM resources of interest:
ISM Domestic Student Accident Insurance
Additional ISM resources of interest for Consortium Gold members:
To The Point Vol. 8 No. 10 Risk Management Audit: Tighten the Gaps in Your School's Safety Net
Ideas and Perspectives Vol. 35 No. 12 Does Your Crisis Plan Really Protect Your Students (and School)?
To The Point Vol. 9 No. 1The Risk Management Audit: Where Are You Now?
