These NJ Cops Use Public Shaming To Keep School Bus Riders Safe

WARREN COUNTY, NJ — The Phillipsburg Police Department has implemented a new plan to keep school bus riders safe from reckless drivers — public shaming.

The department’s new “Safe Path Home Initiative” involves recording drivers who don’t stop for school buses using the buses’ cameras, and then posting the violation on social media.

See this example below:

“This is an example of how not to drive,” one post reads. “Your fine is in the mail.”

When a bus’s lights start flashing and its stop sign folds out, it is not a suggestion. It means school children are exiting the bus, and according to state statutes, drivers are required to stop until the sign folds back in and the bus is on its way.

Since the school year started, Phillipsburg police have already posted 10 videos depicting the "egregious" violation.

“As part of our Safe Path Home Initiative with officers monitoring various bus stops and in coordination with the Phillipsburg School District's bus technology, we will be beginning a new video series during the school year,” a Phillipsburg police statement read. “We will be featuring obvious and/or egregious improper passing of a school bus violations.”

Violators of this law are subject to a minimum fine of $100 and imprisonment or community service for at least 15 days. Any subsequent violations can result in a minimum fine of $250, as well as imprisonment or court-ordered community service.

According to a study from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, between 2000 and 2021, there were 53 deaths in crashes that involved a driver illegally passing a stopped school bus, averaging 2.4 fatalities a year.