Session: Video Surveillance Pilot Project May 2016: Stop Arm Violations Presenter: Roy Wierenga, Student Transportation of Peel Region
Student Transportation of Peel Region (STOPR) Video Surveillance Pilot Project May 2016 Stop Arm Violations Ontario Traffic Safety Council – School Zone Safety Workshop July 19, 2017
What is STOPR?
The Ministry of Education requires all School Boards, that share a common geographical area, to develop partnerships to fully integrate their transportation departments into a Transportation Consortium.
STOPR is 1 of 33 student transportation consortia in Ontario.
STOPR services all Peel District School Board and Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board schools within Peel Region.
What does STOPR do?
STOPR plans and implements home to school transportation for approximately 65,000 students to 400 school sites within Peel Region.
STOPR contracts a fleet of approximately 1,450 school buses, vans, minivans, wheelchair accessible vehicles that travel approximately 51,000 kilometers per day.
STOPR establishes and maintains an integrated transportation routing system with over 5000 individual runs and 20,000 bus stop locations.
Video Pilot Project – Why?
Video Pilot Project – Why?
One of the most critical moments for Student Safety is when students are getting on or off of their school bus.
Video Pilot Project – Why?
Students are at serious risk whenever a vehicle fails to stop for the flashing red lights and stop arm of a school bus.
Our school bus drivers play a key role in keeping students safe.
Under the current law we are relying solely on the school bus driver to try and record all details of any vehicle/driver that fails to stop for their stop arm.
Many times the bus driver is unable to record details as they are focused on keeping their students safe.
Video Pilot Project – Why?
School Bus Drivers receive special training and follow specific instructions to load, unload students and “cross students”
Video Pilot Project – Why?
It is not uncommon for school bus drivers in Peel Region to report vehicles not stopping for their flashing lights and stop arm. (Bus drivers refer to these as “blow-bys”)
Video Pilot Project – What is the law?
In Ontario, Motorists approaching a stopped school bus with its overhead flashing lights must stop and may not pass the school bus while the flashing red lights and stop arm is activated
The current fines are $400.00 to $2,000.00 and six demerit points for a first offence
You can also go to jail for up to 6 months
You must remain stopped until the stop arm folds away and all lights stop flashing
STOPR – Pilot Project
Transportation Consortia in Ontario have already conducted tests of video surveillance equipment. There has been significant challenges particularly in multi-lane situations where the camera does not have the “scope” to monitor all lanes of traffic.
Other challenges included poor video quality due to inclement weather conditions and excessive administration time to track, retrieve and finally deliver the necessary video footage to the police authorities.
STOPR and other Transportation Consortia in Ontario were approached by “Force Multiplier Solutions” (FXS Canada) They have developed a fully integrated video surveillance system for School Buses.
STOPR – Pilot Project
The FXS fully integrated video system operating in the United states includes multiple cameras strategically mounted on the side of the school bus to record violations. Each incident is flagged and a citation package (including the video evidence) is automatically generated and forwarded to a designated contact at the local police authority for their review and final approval.
STOPR along with other Transportation Consortia in Ontario agreed to participate in a small pilot project using the FXS video cameras.
The purpose of the pilot project was specifically to test the quality and scope of the actual video evidence and analysis the systems ability to automatically flag and retrieve video evidence of each violation.
Although interested in the automatic ticketing/citation system, this was not part of our pilot project.
STOPR – Pilot Project
The pilot project ran from May 24/16 to June 10/16 and it involved a total of 11 school buses operating in selected communities all across Ontario including Kitchener/Waterloo, Brantford, Sudbury and Mississauga.
STOPR – Pilot Project Results
The
results were compelling and showed everything from a total disregard for the school bus stopping law to a misunderstanding of the law. (particularly in multi-lane situations)
STOPR – Pilot Project Results Overall results from Stop Arm Camera Pilot Project May 24,2016 to June 10, 2016 (Source FxS Canada)
Results and what did we learn?
The results were compelling and showed everything from a total disregard for the school bus stopping law to a misunderstanding of the law. (particularly in multi-lane situations)
The video samples and results were shared with each Municipality and Law Enforcement agency in each of the respective areas where the pilot project took place.
In certain areas adjustments were made to routing to avoid students crossing the road in certain high incident areas.
Results and what did we learn?
The exterior video cameras mounted on the side of the buses must be “chrome yellow” or “black” and cannot be mounted over any of the reflective strips that run along the side of the bus (as per MTO inspection)
The camera boxes can only be fitted on certain models of buses due to MTO regulations concerning the maximum width of a school bus. (Total width of school bus and mounted camera box cannot exceed 102 inches as per MTO inspection)
Any “video surveillance” signage must be placed in the side or rear windows, not on the outside of the bus body anywhere (as per MTO inspection)
Results and what did we learn?
The school bus driver did not have to record details of any of the vehicles/drivers that passed their bus illegally (it was all captured clearly on video at multiple angles)
The School Bus driver did not have to start or “flag” the video system in anyway, it is all automatic leaving the driver to focus on the students as they get on and off of the bus.
The City of Mississauga and Peel Regional Police were extremely interested in the possibility of expanding the program to include an automatic ticketing/violation system.
Updates - Bill 94
On February 21, 2017, a private members bill (Bill 94) was introduced to propose changes to the Highway traffic Act (HTA)
Bill 94 would allow for the use of school bus camera video to be used as “stand alone” evidence similar to “red light camera evidence”.
Updates - Bill 94 Bill 94 has passed first and second reading and has now been referred to the Standing Committee on Social Policy, where the bill will be reviewed in more detail.
Updates – Amber Advance Warning Light System
Ontario has not yet made the changeover from red to amber overhead advance warning lights for School Buses. Almost every other Province and State has already made this change.
Updates – Amber Advance Warning Light System
Currently in Ontario, all school buses must have all “Red” alternating warning lights.
Updates – Amber Advance Warning Light System
“DO NOT PASS WHEN SIGNALS FLASHING” is the current message on the back door of all School Buses in Ontario.
Updates – Amber Advance Warning Light System
If Ontario adopted the “Amber Warning Light System” this message could be changed to “DO NOT PASS WHEN RED LIGHTS FLASHING”
Video Pilot Project May 2016 Stop Arm Violations Ontario Traffic Council - School Zone Safety Workshop July 19, 2017
Thank You
Roy Wierenga Student Transportation of Peel Region (STOPR) 5685 Keaton Crescent Mississauga Ontario L5R-1C5
[email protected]
