Duval County is set to fine drivers for passing stopped school buses, amid concerns from Miami-Dade’s flawed program. Officials promise robust safeguards to prevent.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — As Duval County prepares to issue fines to drivers caught passing stopped school buses, problems with a similar camera program in South Florida are raising questions about how the system will work locally.
According to the Tribune and Herald report, Drivers in Miami-Dade County were wrongly ticketed hundreds of times after a school bus camera program there issued citations to drivers who were actually following the law.
That program was eventually suspended after officials discovered major problems, including incorrect citations and overwhelmed reviewers.
Now, with fines set to begin soon in Duval County, school police leaders say safeguards are in place to prevent similar issues.
In Miami-Dade, school bus cameras were designed to catch drivers who passed stopped school buses — similar to the system now installed in Duval County.
But an investigation found some drivers received $225 citations even though they were legally driving, particularly on divided roadways where Florida law allows traffic to continue on the opposite side of a raised median.
Officials also found that police officers reviewing violations were struggling to keep up with the volume — more than 400 possible violations per day.
Some notices reportedly listed incorrect fine amounts, and many drivers had difficulty challenging their citations.
Eventually, the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office suspended the program indefinitely.
Duval County Public Schools partnered with BusPatrol America to install stop-arm cameras on more than 900 school buses.
The system uses artificial intelligence to flag potential violations, but officials stress that human review is required before any ticket is issued.
Duval County School Police Chief Jackson Short said the review process includes multiple steps.
“So we’re only going to be approving citations that are obvious violations, and I think that would eliminate some of the problems they experienced in South Florida,” Short said.
According to Short, the AI system first detects possible violations. The footage is then reviewed by BusPatrol before being sent to a school police officer for final approval.
“The guidance that I’ve given our police officers is if you’re not sure, don’t approve the ticket,” Short said.
District leaders say the cameras are necessary because drivers frequently ignore school bus stop arms.
“They’re not just seeing one car drive past the stop arm,” Short said. “They’re seeing two, three, and four cars going through the same stop arm.”
More than 30,000 students ride school buses in Duval County each day.
Officials say the goal is to prevent injuries and improve safety around buses.
The program is currently in its warning phase.
Drivers who violate the law during April will receive warning notices in the mail. Beginning May 1, those warnings will be replaced with official citations carrying a $225 fine.
District leaders said the system will continue to be monitored as enforcement begins.