Parma City School District targets distracted and aggressive drivers with extended stop sign arms on buses - cleveland.com

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PARMA, Ohio -- The long arm of the law is getting a little longer when it comes to the Parma City Schools -- the first district in the state to add 3-foot-long extended stop arms to 10 of its school buses.

District Director of Transportation Angelo Caputo said the retrofitted arm extensions have been on his radar for a while.

“I’ve been trying to get these extended stop arms approved in the state of Ohio for about two-and-a-half years,” Caputo said. “There was a little bit of a hang-up, but they finally became an approved option.

“While other states are using 5-foot and 6-foot extensions, we’re approved for 3-foot extensions,” he said. “Being the first district in the state to purchase these and to try them out has been really exciting for us, because we have some really high (school bus) passing rates in the communities we serve.”

The Ohio State Highway Patrol reports that violations for drivers cited for illegally passing stopped school buses have increased nearly 36 percent over the last three years.

Parma Police Department Public Information Officer Daniel Ciryak said with more people using cell phones and texting while on the road, distracted driving continues to be a problem.

“Hopefully, with these new extended stop signs will help get the attention of these distracted drivers -- as well as inattentive drivers -- to ensure that they don’t pass a stopped school bus,” Ciryak said.

“These can help prevent injuries or even deaths from cars striking children as kids cross the street in front of a school bus.”

In fact, while out on the road Tuesday (Aug. 25), Caputo witnessed firsthand a vehicle attempt to pass a bus, which was stopped with its lights on while picking up a passenger.

“This just provides more visibility,” Caputo said. “It puts that stop sign out further from the bus so hopefully if somebody is distracted, the strobing LED lights grab their attention.”

Purchased from Bus Safety Solutions at $2,150 per bus, the cost of the new additions is coming out of the district’s permanent improvement fund.

“We’ve been collecting data for a few years here, so we’re putting them on buses that have the highest passing rates in the district,” Caputo said. “I’m so excited to be able to do this and test this out. It’s also one more step for us to make sure our kids are staying safe.”

If extended stop sign arms prove to be successful, Caputo said he won’t hesitate in retrofitting more buses annually. Currently, there are 117 buses in the Parma City Schools fleet.

“Absolutely, if we start to see these are working out, then this will be something we’ll be working into our budget every year,” Caputo said.

Read more news from the Parma Sun Post.

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