Hidden camera catches drivers outside Metro Detroit daycare passing stopped school bus
The owner of a daycare in Waterford Township, Michigan, is sounding the alarm after catching multiple drivers blowing past a stopped school bus outside the facility.
Dawn Bajis, owner and director of Little House Academy, captured the first video last Thursday and says it's an issue that happens almost daily.
"This is not new. We've had this issue for years," said Bajis.
"People fly by. They don't even stop anymore," Little House Academy teacher Bridget Caswell said.
Little House Academy is located off Elizabeth Lake Road near Cooley. Bajis tells CBS News Detroit that drivers constantly violate Michigan's school bus law, which puts kids at risk.
"Just blatant disregard for the buses red lights and there always a stop sign that accompanies that red light and people just drive straight past," said Bajis.
Fed up, Bajis set up a hidden camera again on Tuesday. She caught those behind the wheel at it again.
"I knew without a doubt it was going to happen again, and it did. My absolute worst concern is a child being hurt, run over," Bajis stated.
She's now handing the videos over to the police and encourages people to follow the law.
"I'm trying to be proactive with this. There are people that are unaware that you have to stop on a four-lane highway and the only reason why you don't need to stop if the bus is on the other side is if there's a concrete barrier and there's not a concrete barrier here," said Bajis.
Meantime, Bajis is committed to raising awareness and has this message for those on the road.
"It doesn't matter if this is your child, not your child; we have to help keep them safe. There is nothing that is more important than stopping for 20 seconds for a bus for a child to get on safely. It doesn't take that much time," Bajis said.
CBS News Detroit reached out to Waterford Township Police Chief Scott Underwood to find out how the department is addressing the issue. Underwood was not available for an interview on Wednesday, but sent the following statement:
"The Waterford Police Department does, and has always, taken the issue of bus-stop violations seriously. The safety of our residents, especially children, is paramount.
"We consistently work with Waterford School District transportation and security personnel to address bus-stop violations and other traffic matters around our schools, and we will continue to do so.
"We routinely deploy Officers to address specific bus-stop issues and will continue those efforts, in cooperation with the school district. Our Officers conduct both random and targeted enforcement throughout the school year to both enforce and deter violations of the law.
"We also have a process in place to cite violators when bus drivers can provide a description and license plate of those that do not comply with the legal requirement to stop, when a bus driver activates their signals at a bus-stop."