Cars still passing stopped school buses in North Bay
CBC
Since classes started on September 7, the city of North Bay has recorded 29 incidents where drivers have passed stopped school buses as they pick up children.
Tim Feick, the general manager of Stock Transportation, which manages about 100 buses that transport 4,500 students in North Bay each day, said the numbers have gone up significantly in recent years.
"We're seeing an alarming increase in distracted driving," he said.
Feick said his company's vehicles are equipped with cameras, which allow the drivers to record videos that pass them at the touch of a button.
"Recently, I've heard people in the vehicle talking, gesturing with their hands and looking at each other and not even seeing that they're driving by a school bus," he said. "Other times I've heard people are texting on their phones. So those are the two distractions. It seems people just aren't focused on what they're doing."
The increase in those incidents has come despite a 17-year campaign in the area to stop drivers from illegally passing school buses.
The Let's Remember Adam campaign started in 2004, after the death of five-year-old Adam Ranger, who was struck by a vehicle when he got off his school bus and crossed the road to get home.