Latest news with #SteveRandazzo
Miami Herald
11-03-2025
- Business
- Miami Herald
School bus camera violations ‘on hold' for Miami drivers who contest them. What to know
The Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office said Monday that school bus stop-arm violations would be put on hold for all drivers who wish to contest their ticket, a move aimed at addressing the chaos following the roll out of the school district's hastily-approved contract with school bus safety company, BusPatrol America. To take advantage of the temporary reprieve, drivers must contest their violation at a website, The bad news, though, is that the sheriff's statement didn't provide any answers for drivers who were ticketed while driving on the other side of a raised median and just paid the violation. 'As to the median citations already paid, fees were never collected by the Sheriff's Office,' the statement reads. 'Therefore, we don't have legal purview concerning the payments already made. All payments were collected directly through BusPatrol.' The sheriff department's statement follows an investigation by the Miami Herald and the nonprofit newsroom The Tributary, which revealed that the tickets were being issued in error and challenges were going unheard. The Herald/Tributary investigation found that many Miami-Dade drivers were ticketed by the school district's bus safety program while driving on the opposite side of a raised median from a stopped school bus. That's legal, but they got the $225 ticket anyway. On Friday, the sheriff's office issued a statement saying they would be suspending median violations but didn't indicate whether drivers who had already paid would get any reprieve. BusPatrol America, the vendor in the program, did not respond to the Herald/Tributary's questions in time for publishing about whether the company would provide refunds for those who paid median violations. Steve Randazzo, Chief Growth Officer at the company, said that BusPatrol does not make 'enforcement decisions' or 'act in any discretionary manner around ticketing' when the Herald/Tributary asked for a statement last week after the Sheriff suspended all action on median violations. The school district said it would respond to questions about refunds from program revenue but did not issue a statement in time for publication. The Herald/Tributary investigation also found that when drivers tried to fight the violations, they were stuck in limbo waiting for a court date that never came. Often drivers would just pay the fine. It's unclear how many drivers have been improperly ticketed, but school district figures for revenue and violations indicate the number could be substantial: In total, the program is issuing around 400 violations per day and generated more than $20 million as of last month. Barby Rodriguez, the Chief of Staff at the Clerk of Courts and Comptroller, said that as of this morning, the sheriff's office has filed 1,364 contestations in the statewide E-Filing portal. She added that the Clerk does not schedule the hearings and that it would fall under the purview of the courts. A spokesperson for the 11th Judicial Circuit did not respond to questions about the scheduling of these hearings in time for publishing. The school bus safety program is a collaboration between the school district, the Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office, and BusPatrol, which was awarded the contract by the school district. BusPatrol installed cameras on all Miami-Dade school buses to catch motorists in the act of illegally passing a school bus with its 'stop-arm' extended. As of Dec. 19, 120,000 drivers had received violation notices in Miami-Dade County for illegally passing extended school bus 'stop arms.' BusPatrol gets most of the revenue – 70%, although that cut will be reduced to 60% after two years. The school district receives the rest and is supposed to spend it on bus safety. Nandhini Srinivasan is an investigative reporting fellow with The Tributary, a Florida nonprofit investigative newsroom.
Yahoo
11-03-2025
- Yahoo
Hillsborough County Schools using AI to catch drivers failing to obey school bus stop signs
The Brief Videos recorded on Hillsborough County Schools buses show several drivers failing to obey school bus stop signs. The videos are part of a program called BusPatrol. The company is using AI to collaborate with school districts and law enforcement to hold drivers who don't obey the law accountable. TAMPA, Fla. - New videos recorded on Hillsborough County Schools buses show several drivers failing to obey school bus stop signs. These videos are part of a program called BusPatrol, which is a company using artificial intelligence to collaborate with school districts and law enforcement to hold drivers who don't obey the law accountable. A video shows a black car passing a school bus and failing to stop. The driver comes within just feet of a student in the middle of the road. Dig deeper The scary encounter is just one of several recorded by Hillsborough County Schools over the last few months. READ: Florida wins $79M settlement from JUUL: 'It's hurting our kids' "Every single one of these close calls and near-misses are jarring for the average person, to parents, to school administrators," BusPatrol America Chief Growth Officer Steve Randazzo said. BusPatrol is a nationwide program that is free to school districts. The company uses its own artificial intelligence, Ava, to identify violators using license plates. That information is then sent to law enforcement, who ultimately decide whether to issue a citation. "When the bus is slowing down, Ava's brain sort of wakes up, and then all of the telemetry of the bus is hooked into the bus patrol system through Ava, so Ava knows when the buses, amber lights, the yellow lights start flashing, even knows when the school bus is slowing down," Randazzo said. As Randazzo explains, distracted driving is a common theme that causes drivers to fail to obey bus stop signs. Why you should care According to the Florida Department of Education, more than 11,000 illegal passes occur daily, equaling to nearly 2 million violations over a 180-day school year. READ: Potential investor confirms interest in buy the Rays "If folks were more mindful, and we're a little bit more cautious and paying attention, it can wait, even though it might be annoying to wait a minute for the kids to get on or off the school bus," Randazzo said. "Even if you're rushing to that meeting, it's not worth the risk. It's not worth the risk to risk a child's life." How many citations have been issued since Hillsborough County Schools started using the program last summer is unclear. Still, according to BusPatrol, 90% of drivers ticketed don't receive a second citation. The Source FOX 13's Jordan Bowen collected the information in this story. STAY CONNECTED WITH FOX 13 TAMPA: Download the FOX Local app for your smart TV Download FOX Local mobile app: Apple | Android Download the FOX 13 News app for breaking news alerts, latest headlines Download the SkyTower Radar app Sign up for FOX 13's daily newsletter
