It seems like school districts are now being continually bombarded with new ideas and technologies for improving school bus safety. With so much technical innovation happening across the transportation industry, it's inevitable that many of these new technologies would make their way onto buses. But, which ones are actually worth the money?

One easy answer to this question is also one of the most well-established technologies available: video cameras. Camera systems are affordable, and bring a lot of benefits with very few actual drawbacks. They're among the best all-around investments you can make into your school buses.

On Tuesday, September 4, 2018, the West Mifflin, Pennsylvania, police department received a disturbing complaint. Two middle school girls were alleging that their school bus driver had committed "inappropriate actions" towards them, which were implied to be sexual in nature. Normally, an accusation of this nature - by itself - is enough to ruin careers, but the driver had the truth on their side: truth backed up by school bus video!

For many districts, onboard video camera systems represent an excellent solution to many school bus security issues. With video cameras, you can keep a close eye on the behavior of students and drivers, while always having footage available if there are disputes between drivers, students, and\or parents.

That said, video cameras can create problems of their own, particularly if students or parents are concerned about privacy. Having a clear policy outlining best practices for use of the cameras will go a long way towards preventing these problems!