Cameras on Lee County school buses have been capturing around 1,300 drivers weekly who fail to stop when children are boarding or alighting, leading to calls for stricter traffic laws.
Davisha Brown from Lehigh Acres, who was nearly hit by a car as a child while getting off a school bus, believes traffic laws should be stricter. "I think they're doing a good job with how they're making the traffic laws a little bit more harsh, but I think they should make them just a little bit harsher because people obviously don't care what they're doing on the road," Brown said.
Sheriff Carmine Marceno of the Lee County Sheriff's Office emphasized the importance of compliance and education to protect children.
"So, we're educating people. We're gaining compliance. And again, we have to do everything we can to make sure that we protect our children," Marceno said. He explained the rules for stopping when a school bus displays red signs, noting that many drivers are unaware of the law. "Stop when you see those red signs that come out of the bus. If the highway is not divided, you have to stop. And people don't know a lot of people. But again, 90%-plus, once they get that ticket, will stop," Marceno said.
Lee County Schools hopes that the $225 fines will deter drivers from passing stopped school buses. Rob Spicker from Lee County Schools shared research indicating that 90% of drivers who receive a citation do not repeat the offense.
"It's research from bus patrol that identifies 90% of the people. They get a citation. Do not ever get a second one. And that's what we're counting on, that they, they change their behavior, they learn from experience that it's not worth passing that bus on, putting kids at risk," Spicker said. He added that as more people receive tickets, awareness will increase and citations will decline. "Eventually, you get to a point where enough people have gotten a ticket, they're not getting any more, and everybody knows about it, and the number of citations starts to decline," Spicker said.
Brown, now a mother, expressed concern about the safety of children at bus stops. "Some people don't even want to leave their kids at the bus stop anymore, or don't even want to let them walk to the bus stop because of that reason," Brown said, urging the community to prioritize the issue and consider harsher punishments.
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