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Hetherington looks to deter drivers passing school buses
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Written by Jeannette Ross
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Wilton Bulletin
© Copyright 2010 Hersam Acorn Newspapers. All Rights Reserved.
Published On March 14, 2010
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State Rep. John Hetherington, of New Canaan and Wilton, has introduced a bill to promote deterrence and assist in the prosecution of drivers who pass a stopped school bus while its lights are flashing red.
The bill, House Bill 5272, An Act Concerning Evidence Of Failure To Stop For A School Bus, received a public hearing Wednesday, March 3, in front of the legislature’s Judiciary Committee. The bill provides that a still or video image of a vehicle passing a stopped school bus would be sufficient proof of a vehicle’s registration number and thus allow the owner of the car to be deemed the operator and be charged with a violation.
According to 2009 DMV records, there were 1,008 reported violations of passing a school bus statewide and 1,008 violation warnings issued.
In Wilton, Police Chief Michael Lombardo said there were 15 complaints in 2009 of motorists passing stopped school buses. “Anything more that we can use as evidence is helpful to us in determining right and wrong,” said the chief.
In submitted written testimony, Rep. Hetherington said, “In some towns, including New Canaan, a motor vehicle violation may be photographed by a camera mounted on a school bus. Given the advance of this technology there should be modification of the law requiring a written report from a school bus operator to document a violation. It may not be practical for an operator who is supervising children to record information about a passing vehicle.”
In Wilton, however, the 34 school buses operated by First Student have cameras mounted inside, but not outside, said Mary Channing, the district’s transportation coordinator. There has been no serious discussion of mounting cameras outside the buses.
“It’s a big issue,” she said of the violations. “It happens quite frequently.”
“We take this very seriously,” Chief Lombardo said. “It’s children’s lives. Any additional evidence would be welcome.”
Right now in Wilton, the only way a driver can be issued a summons is if a police officer witnesses the incident or if a written report of the incident is submitted by the bus driver or someone else. That someone else could be another motorist or anyone who witnesses the infraction. It is important to report as much information as possible including license plate, make and color of car, time and location.
Mr. Hetherington’s bill would also raise the offense from a traffic infraction to a misdemeanor, which is a low-grade criminal offense. “This would require a court appearance and impress upon a violator the gravity of the matter,” he said.
Mr. Hetherington said he introduced the bill when he became aware of how common an offense passing a school bus is. “The police in New Canaan told me they have felt it necessary to go into a zero-tolerance mode,” Mr. Hetherington said. “They have police often on a school bus to track violations. They’ve been tracking school buses to catch violators.
“It’s a more common offense than I had realized and seems to be a growing problem, so that combined with fact that it is potentially a very dangerous offense and one with very little excuse, we ought to one, make it easier to get a conviction where a conviction is warranted, and two, we ought to raise the gravity of this offense.”
For those unsure of the rules regarding a stopped school bus with its red signals flashing, it’s simple, Ms. Channing said. Everyone stops. On a four-lane highway like Route 7, traffic stops in both directions. “Even a police officer with his siren on has to stop,” she said.
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