Page 18 - The Edge - Fall 2018

School Buses Even Safer

Continued from page 17

Cameras were placed in strategic positions, including on
the roof and on the windshield that captures what the driver
is seeing. “There is more student safety technology than ever
before,” Severyn said.
Even so, according to the National Highway Transportation
Safety Administration, among the 239 pedestrians killed in
school-transportation-related crashes between 2004 and 2013,
79 percent were struck by school vehicles.
“The biggest safety risks are outside the bus, due to
obstructed views, distracted drivers and illegal passers,”
Severyn said. “Passing vehicles cause two-thirds of school bus
loading and unloading fatalities, one-third of students killed
outside bus are ages 5-to-7, and nearly two-thirds of school bus
fatalities of school age children occur outside the bus.
“We need to do better. We need to move from reacting to
predicting and preventing,” Severyn said.
She noted that stop arms and LED warning signs can help
reduce the number of illegal passers, but they don’t prevent a
passing motorist from injuring a student. In addition, mirrors
can improve visibility, but they don’t eliminate all blind spots.
And video evidence helps resolve incidents, but it doesn’t
prevent accidents, according to Severyn.
An indicator can show a driver that a stop arm is activated,
and sensors can alert bus drivers of a possible problem, but
the sensors lack intelligence, Severyn said. Technology can
deliver a false alarm. The driver needs be sure that he is seeing
a garbage container or a mail box and not a person. Too many
false alarms and the driver will tend to ignore them.
Even real-time 360-degree views reduce blind spots, but lack
what Severyn called “proactive notification.”
“We need to take all that technology, including cameras and
sensors, and add artificial intelligence so it sends a warning to
the driver,” she said. “We need to add intelligence to predict and
avoid danger.”
The benefit of advanced predictive and intelligent
technologies is that they protect children in a danger zone and
turn that area into a safety zone. “We need to add ‘intelligence’ to the sensors, and alert
“We need to predict when a child is at risk from passing drivers when there is a real threat,” she said.
vehicles and prevent them from crossing the street,” Severyn Bringing it all together for an integrated perimeter safety
said. solution, Severyn mentioned rear view mirror with integrated
The ideal perimeter safety solution involves: monitor; 360-degree camera views; front, rear, curb-side object
A control module mounted within the bus. detection sensors; stop-arm camera integration; live video
Detection modules mounted near the stop-arm – forward feed; real-time incident alerts; live GPS updates; analytics and
and rear-facing. intelligent decision-making.
A driver display module for visual threat indication. In addition, technology is able to capture a bus driver’s
Internal/external speakers for audible notification to drivers behavior to predict when a driver may be at risk.
and students. “So, what does all of this mean for your school district?”
Proprietary algorithm that calculates speed and distance of Severyn said. “Addressing the issues requires multi-prong
oncoming motorists and provides audio/visual notification of approach.”
impending threats.
A predictive mode prior to the stop-arm being engaged. Marsha Severyn, Sales Manager, School Bus Division, Seon, can
Monitoring during stop-arm deployment. be reached at: marsha.severyn@seon.com or (1-877) 630-7366.

18 THE EDGE | FALL 2018