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Connecticut towns are installing license plate reading cameras on school buses
More than half a dozen towns are using BusPatrol systems to record drivers who pass stopped school buses, and New Haven has logged 12,000 incidents.
- Several Connecticut towns contracted with BusPatrol to install AI-powered license plate readers on school buses to record motorists passing stopped buses displaying flashing red signal lights. Towns include Vernon, Bridgeport, Danbury, Shelton, Stratford, North Haven, and New Haven.
- Following 12 fatalities and 23 serious injuries from school bus incidents over six years, Connecticut lawmakers updated the statute in 2024 to authorize municipalities to establish video monitoring systems and issue $250 fines for first-time camera-caught violations.
- New Haven's installation on more than 300 buses recorded 12,000 incidents earlier this year. In Vernon's initial rollout, BusPatrol cameras captured nearly 100 motorists in the program's first three days, with systems triggered only when warning lights and stop arms are engaged.
- Last month, Gov. Lamont called for a 30-day pause on new ALPR installations while Connecticut Police Officers Standards and Training Council develops guidance, though his directive did not explicitly address school bus-mounted cameras, creating compliance uncertainty.
- Dan Piper, an organizer for the Civil Liberties Defense Committee, warned that expanded camera systems raise privacy risks, particularly regarding data sharing with federal immigration agencies and connectivity to private databases using AI to search for individuals.
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Associated Press News+6 Reposted by 6 other sources
Connecticut towns are installing license plate reading cameras on school buses
City and town leaders across Connecticut have been fielding growing pushback from residents over automated license plate readers, which opponents say raise a range of concerns about privacy.
·New York, United States
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Total News Sources7
Leaning Left3Leaning Right1Center3Last UpdatedBias Distribution43% Left, 43% Center
Bias Distribution
- 43% of the sources lean Left, 43% of the sources are Center
43% Center
L 43%
C 43%
14%
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