Spencer Community School District, in northwestern Iowa and serving more than 2,400 students, is one of the fortunate districts; not a single fatality has been recorded despite the dozens of motorists who made a habit of illegally passing school buses. The district’s transportation supervisor, Dan Schultz, intends it to stay that way.
Schultz was especially concerned about stop-arm violations occurring around the bus that carried Spencer’s 3- and 4-year-old vulnerable preschoolers. With the blessing of the Iowa Pupil Transportation Association (IPTA), the Iowa Department of Education purchased one VHS-based analog video recording system for Schultz to use on the preschool bus. The camera was mounted on the inside of the bus facing outward, and recorded drivers who passed illegally.