More than 2,100 vehicles failed to stop for United ISD school buses during the first 5 months since the launch of the school bus stop-arm camera pilot program.
On Friday, UISD unveiled troubling new data regarding illegal school bus passings during the current school year, 2024-2025. The data is from the district’s school bus stop-arm camera pilot program, which is being conducted in partnership with BusPatrol. United ISD is the first district in Texas to participate in a pilot with BusPatrol. “The school bus is an extension of the school grounds, and as educators and school officials, we must do everything possible to keep our children safe,” said UISD Superintendent Dr. Gerardo Cruz. “This pilot program has been provided at zero cost to our district or taxpayers, with BusPatrol covering everything from technology and installation to program maintenance.”
From October 15, 2024 to March 20, 2025, six United ISD school buses equipped with BusPatrol’s AI-powered stop-arm cameras recorded 2,110 vehicles failing to stop for school buses that had the red lights flashing and stop-arm extended. This is equivalent to 4.3 illegal passes per bus per day. The alarming video also shows the close calls as students attempted to get on or off the school bus, giving the public a firsthand look into the reckless driving that regularly endangers school bus riders. “Now that we have been made aware of these statistics our district is taking a proactive approach as UISD police officers are patrolling the hot spots and citing any violators,” said Joseph Mike Garza, UISD Associate Superintendent of Administration Operation Services.
“Ensuring the safety of students as they ride the bus to and from school every day is of paramount importance,” said Donald Wolfe, Vice President, Government Relations at BusPatrol. “We’re proud to partner with United Independent School District to tackle reckless motorist behavior around school buses, and further spotlight the need for enhanced school bus safety legislation.”
The Texas legislature is considering a bill (HB 1282) that would explicitly allow for all school districts to leverage photo enforcement technology to enforce violations for illegal school bus passings. This legislation comes after years of advocacy from Texas communities and supporters who have raised concerns about a disturbing increase in reckless motorist behavior around school buses.
“I think it is clear that we can and must do a better job of protecting our school children from the danger of getting hit by traffic. This technology would help us do that,” said State Representative Richard Peña Raymond.
At least 29 U.S. states have legalized school bus stop-arm enforcement programs.
Without a fix to Texas law, communities are unable to leverage photo enforcement technology to ticket motorists who break the law and blatantly disregard stopped school buses. United ISD hopes the findings from the stop-arm pilot will bring greater awareness around school bus safety and serve as a compelling case for enacting laws that allow for more effective enforcement measures in Texas.
Each school year, an estimated 45.2 million reckless motorists illegally pass stopped school buses, endangering kids’ lives, according to the National Association of State Directors of Pupil Transportation Services.
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