Technology experts explained how AI can help school bus drivers spot students in blind zones, prevent collisions and improve safety, without replacing driver judgment.

AI could give school bus drivers an extra set of eyes when students are most vulnerable: Boarding, exiting and crossing near the school bus, according to a Thursday webinar sponsored by Brigade Electronics. The company’s representatives discussed how AI-powered cameras can recognize pedestrians, cyclists and other hazards, then alert drivers before an incident occurs.

CEO Corey Heniser said traditional cameras provide visibility, but AI adds the ability to recognize people and issue active warnings.

“It can identify the human form and what we call it as human form recognition,” he explained. “That will identify individuals, pedestrians, as well as small students around a vehicle and allow you to take evasive action where needed.”

Protecting Students in Blind Zones

Steve Wenger, Brigade’s OEM business development manager, said school buses present significant visibility challenges because of their size and the number of students moving around them.

Wenger explained that AI-enabled, 360-degree camera systems can monitor blind spots and identify people approaching or moving alongside a bus. He added that the technology can support driver awareness during loading and unloading.

“Artificial intelligence is a human-taught technology,” Wenger said, explaining that developers train systems to recognize hazards and determine when to alert operators.

Brigade’s presentation highlighted a camera system with full 360-degree visibility and AI-powered pedestrian detection. Another application adapts technology originally developed to protect workers behind waste trucks to help monitor students around school buses, according to the slide deck.

Wenger emphasized that AI should complement established safety practices.

“Artificial intelligence is not necessarily replacing judgment or experience or the many trainings that an operator goes through,” he said, adding that instead, it can provide earlier warnings and better information when drivers need to make critical decisions.

Helping School Bus Drivers Prevent Crashes

Jeff Schweitzer, Brigade’s national sales manager, said AI offers particular value to districts experiencing driver turnover and increasingly complicated traffic conditions.

“Today’s drivers need more support [now] than ever,” he said.

Schweitzer explained that AI cameras can monitor high-risk areas and notify drivers while they still have time to respond. He contrasted that capability with traditional video systems, which primarily document incidents afterward.

“Prevention is more valuable than recording,” he noted.

Wenger also covered AI dashcams that can warn drivers about potential collisions, unsafe following distances and lane departures. Driver-facing cameras can identify fatigue, distraction and handheld-device use, while connected systems allow transportation departments to review events and provide targeted coaching.

Schweitzer said those capabilities can help newer drivers develop situational awareness.

“Experience definitely cannot be built overnight,” he noted.

Turning Safety Data Into Action

Heniser said districts could eventually combine AI camera information with telematics to identify near misses, recognize recurring hazards and tailor driver coaching for school bus drivers with more close calls.

Brigade’s slide deck also presented injury and fatality trends from 2013 through 2022. Heniser pointed to a general decline in injuries over the period, but he said fatalities remained comparatively steady outside the pandemic-related dip in 2020. He cited those trends while explaining the potential benefits of more proactive safety technology.

Heniser said districts can add AI camera systems to existing buses through aftermarket installations, while manufacturers may increasingly offer the technology on new vehicles.

Wenger cautioned that AI recognition remains imperfect and can produce false positives, but said timely warnings still offer safety benefits.

“It’s not perfect, but it’s extremely accurate,” he said.

Wenger also clarified that automated vehicle functions, such as braking, would require integration at the manufacturer level rather than a simple camera retrofit.

Starting With School District Safety Needs

Schweitzer encouraged transportation leaders to frame AI as a tool for protecting students, drivers and communities rather than employee surveillance.

“It’s not the big brother side of it,” he said.

Heniser advised districts to identify their most common safety challenges before selecting technology, whether those involve loading zones, blind spots or driver behavior.

“Really, it’s up to the fleet managers, fleet operators, drivers to identify where their most common problems are,” he concluded.

Heniser also emphasized that AI’s role in student transportation should remain focused on helping drivers create safer conditions, rather than replacing their judgement or student interaction.

“The goal overall is to create a safer environment while operating vehicles,” he summarized.

Watch the webinar on demand.

Written with the assistance of AI and a live session transcript.

The post AI Cameras Aim to Make School Bus Operations Safer appeared first on School Transportation News.

The Anahuac Independent School District board approved a $159,150 in funding for purchasing and installing video cameras on existing school buses after a pickup truck nearly struck a 9-year-old girl approaching her bus in Chambers County, Texas, reported KFDM News.

Angela Nelson told local news reporters that her daughter, Lorigan, was preparing to board her school bus outside her home Sept. 18, when a pickup truck passed the stopped bus.

Video Nelson shared with local news shows Lorigan looking both ways before approaching the bus, which had its stop arm extended and red lights flashing. The girl spotted the pickup and moved away just before it passed, reportedly missing her by inches.

Chambers County Sheriff Brian Hawthorne said investigators had identified and spoken with the motorist, who could face a reckless driving charge, a Class B misdemeanor.

Angela Nelson said the county attorney indicated that additional video and other evidence would be gathered and that the case could be presented to a grand jury.

Nelson also provided investigators with footage from a camera outside her home. That recording reportedly shows the school bus coming into view with its lights flashing several seconds before the pickup passes.

Texas law requires motorists approaching in either direction to stop for a school bus loading or unloading students, when its required visual signals are activated. Drivers may proceed when the bus moves, its driver signals them to proceed, or the signals stop.

Anahuac Superintendent David Walker told local reporters that the district currently has no cameras on its buses. He presented information to trustees who approved the new bus purchase and additional camera equipment.

The district was reportedly considering systems with approximately five interior cameras and two exterior cameras per bus. Walker is reviewing vendors, costs and potential funding sources, including the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality’s Supplemental Environmental Projects program.

Written with the assistance of AI.

Related: Wisconsin Teen Injured After Being Struck by Pickup While Boarding School Bus
Related: 9-year-old Boy Struck by SUV While Waiting for School Bus
Related: Two Students Struck After High School Student Illegally Passes School Bus
Related: Kentucky Motorist Arrested After Illegal Passing School Bus, Hitting Child

The post Texas District Approves School Bus Cameras After Girl Nearly Struck by Pickup appeared first on School Transportation News.

Your district’s bus cameras capture footage from every route every day, quietly building a record of what happens inside and around your buses. If you’ve focused your vendor selection on picture quality, camera placement, and ease-of-use features, there’s a good chance you have overlooked a critical question: how well is that footage protected?

The Onboard Storage Security Gap

When something happens on a bus, whether it’s a bullying complaint, a driver dispute, or an accident, the video footage is often the only objective account of what occurred. That’s why the system capturing it needs real safeguards built in from the start, not only to ensure the footage exists, but to protect it once it does.

If your current system still relies on someone physically accessing a bus to manually remove a card or drive it, you’re exposed to significant risk. That storage device could end up lost or damaged. The footage may never have been recorded properly in the first place, and you might not discover that until you need it.

Many modern system setups now store footage on a mobile Digital Video Recorder (DVR) on the bus first, then move it to a secure cloud platform where your team can pull up an incident without needing physical access to the vehicle.

Ask whether your system is capable of:

• Remote System Health Monitoring
  Catch a failed camera or a recording issue before an incident happens
• Locked Physical Storage
  A DVR unit that’s physically locked down, so footage can’t be pulled by just anyone with access to the bus
• Role-Based Software Permissions
  Only approved staff can view, share, or download footage
• Audit Logs
  Documenting who accessed which recording, when, and any sharing or downloading activity

Audit logs are the most overlooked of the four during procurement and can sometimes be the most important after an incident. If a parent or school administrator asks how footage was handled, you want a clear, documented answer, not one you’re piecing together after the fact.

Hardware Must Be Part of Your Security Plan

Buses subject onboard equipment to constant vibration, temperature swings, and daily wear from transporting students five days a week. But durability isn’t the only reason that mounting and camera choices are important. A camera that protrudes out into the cabin is also easier to grab, twist out of position, or cover.

Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 222, the regulation governing school bus passenger seating and crash protection, establishes a “head impact zone” inside the bus. Many states build on that by requiring that interior equipment be located outside that zone, have no sharp edges or projections, and be placed in a manner unlikely to cause student injury. Cameras that sit flush with the ceiling, rather than protruding into the cabin, are more likely to meet those requirements and more resistant to tampering.

This is a detail that rarely factors into early vendor conversations, yet it can influence how dependable your system stays for years into its service life.

Security Doesn’t Stop at the Interior

If your approach to bus video security only covers what happens inside the bus, you’re missing part of the picture. Stop-arm cameras that capture plates of vehicles passing illegally, along with forward- and side-facing exterior cameras, need the same protection as interior footage: controlled access, tamper resistance, and a record of who has accessed each file. A system that’s locked down inside but loosely managed outside still leaves you exposed.

It All Comes Back to Trust

Two factors determine whether your video system delivers when it matters: whether you can trust the footage will be there when you need it, and whether it holds up to scrutiny from parents, administrators, or law enforcement.

A system that protects footage from loss or tampering, and documents who accessed it and when, addresses both. You’re not just more likely to have the footage. You’re in a far stronger position if it’s ever questioned, whether that’s a bullying complaint, a question about a driver, or documentation following an accident.

That’s the standard worth holding your video solution to. Capturing what happened isn’t enough on its own. The footage needs to be there when needed, with safeguards in place to protect it for as long as it’s needed.

Learn more at www.provisionsolutions.com. 

The views expressed are those of the content sponsor and do not reflect those of School Transportation News.

The post The Security Gaps Most Districts Overlook in Bus Video Solutions appeared first on School Transportation News.

Nearly half of parents with school bus riders say their child has experienced a close call near a bus or in a school zone, according to a new national survey that also found broad support for automated enforcement against motorists who illegally pass stopped buses.

The Governors Highway Safety Association said in a Sept. 15 news release that 46 percent of parents whose children ride a school bus reported such an incident. The survey also found that 91 percent of parents support automated stop-arm enforcement, which uses cameras mounted on buses to identify vehicles that pass while a bus is stopped to load or unload children with its flashing red lights activated and federally mandated stop arm extended.

Overall, 36 percent of the respondents said their children experienced a similar close call involving dangerous driving near a school bus or school zone, which GHSA said includes distracted driving and speeding. Another 43 percent said they know another child who had experienced a close call.

When asked why they think motorists drive dangerously around school buses, 53 percent of the parents think the motorists do not believe they will be caught.

Survey Methodology

The survey was conducted June 16 through 25 by the Ocamb Group and included 525 U.S. parents with children ages 6 to 17 living at home. Separate oversamples of 250 Texas parents and 251 Ohio parents were interviewed June 26 through 28. Ocamb Group founder David Ocamb said respondents were recruited through a national online research panel. The national sample was weighted by gender and geographic region to better reflect the U.S. population of parents with school-age children. For the national sample of 525 respondents, the equivalent maximum margin of sampling error is approximately plus or minus 4.3 percentage points at the 95-percent confidence level. The Texas and Ohio oversamples each have an equivalent maximum margin of sampling error of approximately plus or minus 6.2 percentage points.

The findings come as students are back in classrooms across the country and communities renew efforts to protect children at bus stops, crosswalks and school zones. Parents responding to the survey described motorists passing buses with flashing lights and extended stop signs, speeding through school zones and driving while distracted.

In accounts released with the findings, one parent said a motorist tried to pass a school bus on the side where the parent’s child was walking and nearly struck the student. Another described a car swerving within feet of a child who was crossing in front of a school bus while its lights flashed and its stop sign was extended.

“Parents are telling us that dangerous driving around school buses and school zones is not an abstract concern but something their children are experiencing firsthand,” GHSA CEO Jonathan Adkins said in a statement.

Adkins added that driver education remains important, but the findings show parents also want motorists held accountable when they endanger children. He encouraged communities to use proven tools and technology to make school travel safer.

Parents called for stronger enforcement and greater use of stop-arm cameras, according to GHSA. One respondent also suggested placing more crossing guards at busy intersections during school arrival and dismissal times.

“This is a back-to-school, wake-up call and it’s no wonder that 91 percent of parents support automated stop-arm enforcement to protect their children’s safety,” Justin Meyers, president and chief innovation officer of BusPatrol, told STN.

BusPatrol, which markets school bus stop-arm camera systems, provided financial support for the survey, according to GHSA.

The association, which represents state and territorial highway safety offices, said the results add parents’ perspectives to a broader national push to address illegal passing and other dangers around school buses.

The Illegal Passing National Action Plan

GHSA and BusPatrol released “A National Action Plan for School Bus Safety” in March. The organizations described it as the first comprehensive 50-state roadmap for protecting the approximately 20 million children who travel on the nation’s 500,000 school buses each day.

The plan includes 69 recommendations for state highway safety offices, law enforcement agencies, school districts, educators, school bus drivers, technology companies, autonomous vehicle providers, safety advocates, judges and prosecutors.

Recommendations include adding school bus safety to state highway safety plans, using data to identify locations with frequent violations, expanding public education campaigns, establishing stop-arm enforcement programs and training drivers to recognize unsafe motorist behavior. The plan also effectively calls for more consistent definitions and reporting protocols for bus-stop injuries and related incidents.

As STN previously reported, the plan refers to estimates that motorists illegally passed school bus stop arms over 39 million times during the 2024-2025 school year, the equivalent of each school bus being passed once every three days.

Since then,  the National Association of State Directors of Pupil Transportation Services’ annual one-day survey, in which participating school bus drivers manually record illegal passings, extrapolated that the number of illegal passings decreased for the 2025-2026 school year but still show a significant problem. Over the summer, NASDPTS reported that 101,334 school bus drivers in 39 states and the District of Columbia observed 56,024 illegal passings in one day. NASDPTS adjusted the results to estimate nationwide daily violations and projected that figure across a 180-day school year.

The action plan grew out of discussions at the inaugural National School Bus Safety Summit in December 2025. BusPatrol convened the event with support from GHSA and Safe Kids Worldwide, bringing together nearly 500 government officials, law enforcement representatives, transportation professionals and safety advocates.

The plan also seeks to draw more attention to close calls and psychological trauma that may never appear in traditional crash statistics.

GHSA Captures Perspectives on Real-Life Illegal Passings

The new GHSA survey did not measure crashes or injuries. Instead, it captured parents’ reports of close calls and their views about enforcement. Two recent incidents in Michigan and Florida illustrate the different dangers children can encounter around school buses and nearby roads.

In Bedford Township, Michigan, an elementary student came within inches of being struck by a car that passed his stopped school bus Sept. 9, according to the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office.

The incident happened about 4:05 p.m. in the 7600 block of Douglas Road as the student was being dropped off by a Bedford Public Schools bus. Sheriff Troy Goodnough said the bus had its flashing red lights and stop arm activated, legally requiring other motorists to stop.

Video released by the sheriff’s office shows the student beginning to cross the road in front of the bus before abruptly stopping as a blue Chevrolet Malibu passes in the opposite direction.

“Thankfully, a devastating incident was avoided due to the awareness of both the student and bus driver observing the vehicle prior to the student completely crossing the roadway,” Goodnough said.

Bus surveillance video captured the vehicle’s license plate, allowing investigators to identify the driver as a 19-year-old from Toledo, Ohio, authorities said. Police used Flock cameras in Bedford Township and Toledo to locate the vehicle.

The sheriff’s office is seeking a reckless driving charge against the driver.

Michigan law requires motorists to stop at least 20 feet from a school bus when its overhead red lights are flashing. Passing a stopped school bus can result in a civil infraction and a fine of up to $500. A violation resulting in injury can carry a fine of up to $1,000 and/or up to one year in jail.

In Escambia County, Florida, a 12-year-old Pensacola boy suffered non-life-threatening injuries after being struck by a car Sept. 8.

The Florida Highway Patrol said via local news reports that an Escambia County school bus was stopped facing west on La Ventana Drive and unloading students at the intersection. After leaving the bus, the boy walked west toward Muldoon Road.

“As he attempted to cross Muldoon Road to reach Perkins Street, he walked directly into the path of a northbound white sedan driven by a 25-year-old Pensacola woman,” the Highway Patrol said.

The boy was taken to a hospital with injuries that were not considered life-threatening.

Authorities did not say the Florida driver illegally passed the school bus. The incident nevertheless highlights the risks children can face after leaving a bus and crossing nearby roads.

Related: Kentucky Motorist Arrested After Illegal Passing School Bus, Hitting Child
Related: Officers to Ride California School Buses During Illegal Passing Enforcement Operation
Related: Detroit Lions Retired Offensive Lineman Joins Latest Michigan Illegal Passing Awareness Campaign
Related: South Dakota Highway Patrol Launches School Bus Safety Outreach Week
Related: Florida Officials Stress School Bus Stop Safety After Illegal Passer Hits Student

The post Survey Highlights Close Calls of Illegal Passing Involving School Buses Riders appeared first on School Transportation News.

The September issue explores how technology is reshaping school transportation, from AI and connected tools to video systems, routing and communications. Learn how Allentown School District is using technology to improve safety and operations, hear from Los Angeles Unified School District’s new superintendent on transportation’s role in student access and discover how districts are navigating the shift to cloud-based video storage. Plus, get practical insights on implementing AI with guardrails and using technology to support drivers and transportation teams.

Read the full September issue.

Cover Story

Tech Focused
Student transportation leaders at Pennsylvania’s Allentown School District are turning connected tools into safer service and operational gains, using technology to improve communication, efficiency and the student experience.

Features

The Video Storage Shift
As school bus camera systems become more sophisticated, districts are weighing cloud, local and hybrid storage options while balancing accessibility, cost, cybersecurity and student privacy.

Driver Training Goes High-Tech
Technology is changing how transportation departments approach driver training, coaching, safety and performance.

Improving Communications With Technology
New technology is giving transportation teams more ways to communicate with drivers, families and administrators while improving visibility and service.

Special Report

AI Takes a Larger Role in School Transportation Management
Transportation leaders explore how AI can support dispatch, fleet management, budgeting, driver training and other operations while emphasizing policies, safeguards and responsible use.

Q&A 

Transportation’s True Value
Los Angeles Unified School District’s new superintendent discusses transportation’s role in student access, educational opportunity, operational efficiency and student success.

Conversations

Ad Index

Columns

Editor’s Take by Ryan Gray
Don’t Bury the ‘Lede’

Publisher’s Corner by Tony Corpin
School is Back, So Are Safety Risks

Thought Leader By Tim Ammon
Changing Times, Perspectives

The post September 2026 appeared first on School Transportation News.

When bus surveillance footage is difficult to access or unreliable, transportation teams lose valuable time resolving incidents and supporting drivers. Read how one Washington school district improved efficiency with REI’s ARMOR Software Suite. Michael Dofelmire, transportation specialist at Fife Public Schools, discusses its impact.

REI: What prompted you to look for a solution like ARMOR?

Dofelmire: We had a very old [camera] system with a lot of problems. We would pull hard drives and they wouldn’t work, they’d be corrupt. The cameras wouldn’t work. Overall, we weren’t getting quality out of our systems. We also had only two cameras in every bus. One in the front and one in the back. With those cameras and the newer high-back seats, you couldn’t see among the seats. Kids would sneak down, and you couldn’t see them. That pushed us to get a newer camera system. We chose REI due to all the features and what it had in the background, including ARMOR.

REI: What do you like most?

Dofelmire: The quality and how everything is a cloud-based service so anybody can log in depending on how it’s set up. We have it set to where incident video is automatically downloaded before the driver even gets back, so they can view it quickly. Each person can download and see their own videos. That’s huge for [drivers] to have that access and flexibility. Saves a lot of time.

REI: How has ARMOR helped you resolve events faster?

Dofelmire: Being able to track things immediately. It’s set up so that when drivers press their panic buttons, my supervisor and I automatically receive text messages. [ARMOR] automatically flags the video, downloads it and does all the amazing work that it does.

REI: How has it simplified your job?

Dofelmire: We’ve had vaping on the bus and situations where a driver wonders what’s going on. We’re able to see live into the bus, look at that seat and catch the kids doing something right then and there. By the time the driver gets back, we’ve done the paperwork on writing those kids up and disciplining them. It has really streamlined the process.

REI: What’s the most significant change?

Dofelmire: The GPS, knowing where the buses are, and having access to the video almost instantly once it downloads. It’s very quick to send a video link to a principal through e-mail.

REI: What’s the feedback on ARMOR?

Dofelmire: Really good. Drivers love being able to download and watch the video themselves. Principals love it. [Incidents] can be dealt with that night versus tomorrow. It streamlines everything, definitely a game changer.

The ARMOR advantage is simple: stronger student safety, better driver support and streamlined daily operations. Let’s discuss all the ways ARMOR’s automated fleet management tools and REI camera systems can help your team save time and work smarter. Watch the demo, then send us a message, call 800.228.9275 or contact your REI sales rep.

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The views expressed are those of the content sponsor and do not reflect those of School Transportation News.

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