Jefferson County Public Schools in Lakewood, Colorado, is spending over $1 million to replace older security camera systems on its school buses, reported The Denver Channel.
Greg Jackson, executive director of transportation and fleet services for Jeffco, reportedly said that installing high-quality interior cameras is crucial for confirming bullying and other incidents on board school buses.
Safety Vision is the company installing the cameras. Sales Manager Clint Bryer said, “The priority is seeing what’s going on inside the bus.”
The new security camera system will include seven cameras per bus – four interior cameras and three exterior cameras. The exterior cameras are a new addition for Jeffco, in response to the rising concern of increased stop-arm violations.
Jackson cited a 10-percent increase in stop-arm violations in the past two years, with school bus drivers reporting more and more incidents of cars passing illegally.
Bryer added that this new system will allow drivers to stay focused on student safety and not have to worry about remembering and recording details of offending cars and drivers. The cameras will capture the vehicle description and license plate, while drivers can mark the location of the incident giving investigators synced footage from all seven cameras.
Jeffco operates over 300 school buses, which will be updated with the camera systems in phases, starting with one-third of the buses in 2021.
