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Police Make Arrest in Hit-and-Run Near School Bus
WCVB-TV ABC 5 (Massachusetts), May 15, 2014

Police have arrested a woman for a hit-and-run that injured three children waiting for the school bus in Brockton, Thursday morning. A witness said the children were crossing the street toward the stopped school bus. See related article at HNGN.

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Cameras on School Buses Help Nab Drivers
WRGB-TV CBS 6 (New York), May 13, 2014

We all know there are big penalties for passing a stopped school bus but too often there’s no one there to punish drivers who do it. Now, New York state may soon allow school districts to mount cameras on the outside of school buses to nab them.

Vehicle Hits Student at School Bus Stop
WHNS-TV FOX 21 (South Carolina), May 13, 2014

A woman has been charged and given bond after a Gaffney High School freshman was hit by a car on Tuesday. Joe Walker with Cherokee County Schools said the female ninth-grade student was getting onto her bus at the bus stop along Wilkinsville Highway when she was hit by a car. Troopers said the school bus was stopped in the northbound lane with its lights and stop sign activated when the 16-year-old girl was crossing the road to board the bus.

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Cathedral City OKs Red-Light Safety Cameras
The Desert Sun (California), May 14, 2014

The City Council, in a 4-1 vote, approved Cathedral City’s costly red-light cameras Wednesday — placing public safety ahead of revenues. The city’s police department placed the cameras at three intersections, reducing car crashes at the sites from 67 in 2005 to 14 in 2013. (The Desert Sun photo by Crystal Chatham)

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Crashes, Violations Fall at Boca Intersections with Red-Light Cameras
Sun Sentinel (Florida), May 13, 2014

Drivers in Boca are having less wrecks at red lights – and the unblinking cameras posted there may have something to do with that. That’s good news for the city, which installed the cameras at six high-traffic spots hoping to make them safer, a move that appears to be working. (Sun Sentinel photo by Mark Randall)

Police: Car Runs Red Light, Collides with School Bus
The Ledger Independent (Kentucky), May 12, 2014

An official with Jefferson County Public Schools says minor injuries have been reported after a crash involving a school bus and a car. JCPS spokesman Ben Jackey told media that 16 of 27 Hawthorne Elementary School students complained of minor injuries on Monday morning after the accident. Police say a car ran a red light and hit the bus, which wasn’t damaged.

Bill Places Red-Light Safety Cameras in Albany
WXXA-TV FOX 23 (New York), May 11, 2014

A new bill going through the New York State Capitol could have Albany drivers paying for running a red light. If passed, the bill would allow Albany to put cameras at a number of traffic lights in the city, taking pictures of any drivers who run a red light, and several state lawmakers are showing their support.

Albany Mayor: Red-Light Cameras Are for Safety, Not Money
Capitol Confidential (New York), May 10, 2014

Albany Mayor Kathy Sheehan said Saturday that she supports a bill that would empower the city to install red-light cameras at up to 20 intersections but was adamant the decision needs to be about public safety, not money.

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Florida Governor Will Veto Bill Raising Highway Speeds
FlaglerLive.com, May 13, 2014

Six days after a Florida Highway Patrol trooper gave an impassioned request against the proposal during the funeral service for a fellow trooper, Gov. Rick Scott said he will veto a measure that could increase speeds on state highways. Scott told reporters after the state Cabinet meeting Tuesday that he will “stand with law enforcement” and veto the bill (SB 392), which has yet to be forwarded to his desk by state lawmakers.

Curbing the Need for Speed in School Zones
Times Beacon Record (New York), May 8, 2014

As New York State politicians debate the merits of installing speed cameras in school zones, administrators from across the North Shore agreed that while there are still questions about the idea, it couldn’t hurt in efforts to improve student safety.

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Association Backs School Bus Safety Cameras in New York
School Transportation News, May 14, 2014

The New York Association for Pupil Transportation is urging the state Senate and Assembly to take up bills that would authorize school districts to install video cameras to capture motorists who illegally pass stopped school buses, as well as protect students and school employees from criminal bus trespassors.

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County Considers Raising Fine for Illegal School Bus Passing
WRC-TV NBC 4 (Washington, D.C.), May 13, 2014

Montgomery County wants to crack down on people who don’t stop for school buses by raising the fine from $125 to $250.

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ATS logo

American Traffic Solutions is pleased to announce it has finalized an agreement with Kaufman County, Texas, for the installation of two separate Road Safety Camera Programs. The county will implement a school zone speed safety camera program and a school bus stop arm safety program to improve the level of safety for children walking and riding to and from schools in the county. ATS is honored to be a part of this important project.

Furthermore, ATS is excited to present four clients who have extended their road safety camera programs, beginning with the Township of Monroe, New Jersey, which is acting on the first of two automatic one-year extensions to keep their program into May 2015. Additional clients with newly extended contracts are: the City of McKenzie, Tennessee, an ATS client since 2010, whose program is extended through Dec. 31, 2019; the Town of Bel Air, Maryland, whose program began in 2009, is continuing  for another year; and the City of Davie, Florida, is extending the first phase of its red-light camera program to Oct. 2015, and aligning it with its phase II program schedule. ATS is proud to be selected by these municipalities as a continuing partner in their road safety camera programs.

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Northern Virginia Toll Lanes Builder Foresees Success
WAMU Radio 88.5 FM (Washington, D.C), May 12, 2014

The international toll road developer that built the 495 Express Lanes — 14 miles of EZ Pass-only toll/HOV-3 lanes between the I-95/I-395 interchange and Dulles Toll Road — says it will remain “committed as a partner” with the state of Virginia, although the for-profit highway project has yet to make any money since opening 18 months ago.

Max Toll Hit 12 Times, Appears to Be Working
WLRN-Radio 91.3 FM (Florida), May 12, 2014

Since March 1 the cost of a ride in the 95 Express fast lane has hit $10.50 at least 13 times. Nine of those cases occurred on the northbound express lanes, seven of which happened between 5 and 7 p.m.  According to the new tolling rule, the maximum toll would automatically go up if too many drivers are willing to pay $10.50. But the new maximum seems to be doing the trick. In March, 90.2 percent of northbound 95 Express trips were 45 mph or faster.

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Ohio State Patrol @OSHP Let’s make sure all our loved ones make it home safely. #MoveOver #Drive2SaveLIves @TheIACP @THP_Colonel Pic.twitter.com/b3pfCicGHM

ATS_Road Safety @ATS_RoadSafety This week is National #Police Week. Thanks to all the men and women who risk everything to make our roads safer. tmblr.co/ZC9-Wt1Fsbk-m

Retweeted by ATS_Road Safety NCSR @SaferRoadsUSA Never forget why it’s so important #StopOnRed — bit.ly/1VOSmVJ

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Editorial: Quit Running Red Lights in Our City
Lubbock Avalanche-Journal (Texas), May 14, 2014

When the traffic light turns yellow, that doesn’t mean hit the accelerator and try to speed through the intersection before the light turns red. Unfortunately, too many of us are doing that. The number of wrecks involving drivers who ran red lights increased 50 percent in 2013, according to Lubbock police statistics.

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Letter to the Editor: Drive However Fast You Want in Show Low
White Mountain Independent (Arizona), May 13, 2014

Photo enforcement going away? I am so happy the folks from Tucson or from any place else can now speed through Show Low and not get a photo ticket. What a relief. Even the locals will enjoy speeding again without worry. The City Council should be patting themselves on their backs.

Letter: Traffic Violation Should Stand
Bradenton Herald (Florida), May 10, 2014

This is in response to the driver who, in his May 1 letter to the editor, stated that he thought he could make a right turn because the oncoming traffic was turning left. He received a ticket with a photo that showed that he was clearly in the wrong. He was clearly wrong and his ticket should not have been voided. He violated the law and he should be held accountable.

Letter: Traffic Cameras — Safety Is Most Important
Boulder Daily Camera (Colorado), May 10, 2014

Speed limits and traffic regulations were created to reduce carnage and death on highways and streets. Did you enter the intersection on a red light or not? Did you drive above the posted speed limit or not? Whether a person or a camera observes this violation matters not one bit to me. What does matter is my grandchildren’s right to stay alive.

Letter: Traffic Cameras Do Not Harm Innocent
Newsday (New York), May 9, 2014

I just finished reading more complaints regarding red-light and school-zone speed cameras. The writers complain that the camera fines represent a tax or an abuse of citizens by politicians. I couldn’t disagree more. A tax is compulsory. The fines from these cameras are only levied if you choose to speed through a school zone or fail to come to a complete stop.

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“The $44,000 that The Desert Sun reports today, to me, is secondary to the amount of lives this has saved. This never was about the money. It’s a safety issue, and those intersections are safer than they were just a few years ago.”
Greg Pettis, Councilman of Cathedral City, California
The Desert Sun, May 14, 2014 

“It’s educated our community to stop at the intersections and be a little more prudent when they approach the intersection.”
Michele Miuccio, Deputy Chief of the Boca Raton Police Department
Sun Sentinel (Florida), May 13, 2014

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California
In Cathedral City, red-light cameras were installed at three intersections to cut down on crashes — and they have. In 2005, there were a total of 67 collisions at the intersections. In 2013, there were 14. Source: The Desert Sun, May 14, 2014.