Cobb County

Local school district to add speed cameras, urging drivers to slow down

COBB COUNTY, Ga. — Students around Georgia are headed back to school, and yet cameras are catching drivers blowing past stopped school buses.

The district’s bus depot in Marietta showed Channel 2 what they’re adding to more school buses this year.

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Stop-arm cameras spot what drivers are doing wrong when they approach a school bus, and the district already has more than 60 of these on school buses.

They are adding even more this school year.

“One of the very important things that other motorists need to watch out and look out for are our amber lights,” Terri Anderson, lead trainer with Marietta City Transportation Department, said.

Anderson says the first thing that the camera will do is it will identify that the bus is getting ready to make a stop.

“Our stop arm over here on the other side also allows other motorists to know we are getting ready to unload students. I’m sure you see motorists on the roads not paying attention to this? Not paying attention and I know in today’s society everyone’s looking down or looking at their phones.”

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Anderson says residents are not exercising patience. They’re just blowing through that stop sign and going around.

But police and Marietta city school leaders have been busy educating drivers and students about safety.

“We have a SOAR program that teaches kids how to be safe, orderly and respectful around the school bus,” Kimberly Ellis, director of transportation for Marietta City Schools, said.

And these stop-arm cameras on school buses spot drivers that blow through the stop sign.

“I’m proud to say Marietta has stop arm cameras on 62 of our route buses. We are waiting on eight more to come in,” Ellis said.

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