Sep 1, 2004 12:00 PM

Big Brother on Board

Dirty looks from the driver are nothing. Students who ride the bus to school are increasingly under video surveillance. The most technologically vigilant districts are even using fingerprint scanners and GPS to keep tabs on kids in transit. With all these advanced safety measures, you’d think they’d also install some seat belts. Most buses still […]

Dirty looks from the driver are nothing. Students who ride the bus to school are increasingly under video surveillance. The most technologically vigilant districts are even using fingerprint scanners and GPS to keep tabs on kids in transit. With all these advanced safety measures, you'd think they'd also install some seat belts. Most buses still don't have them.

1. Biometric scans

Students in Pinellas County, Florida, get to give their drivers the finger - index, not middle. The local district installed GeoSpatial Technologies' digital fingerprint scanners to ensure that, starting this fall, kids get on and off at the right stops.

2. Surveillance cams

Honeywell's Digital Chaperone system can capture and store up to 80 gigs of digital video and audio from four vantage points. The cams give school officials (and cops) evidence against bullies. Some districts burn CD-Rs of misbehavior, lending new meaning to "This will go on your permanent record." An external cam also rats out drivers who whiz by the bus's extended stop arm: It snaps their plate numbers.

3. GPS trackers

Fingerprint scanners on Pinellas County's 750 buses are linked to GeoSpatial's GST Trackers, onboard GPS units that transmit data to a central network via Wi-Fi and traditional radio. Dispatchers monitoring the kids also watch for speeding bus drivers. In an emergency, drivers can hit a panic button to alert system administrators.

4. Seat belts (optional)

Most full-size school buses don't have seat belts - which is just how it should be, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Studies show that on large buses lap-only belts do little to prevent serious or fatal injuries. And, even when there are lap-and-shoulder belts, there's no guarantee students will use them. One alternative: increasing seat-back height to 24 inches so fewer kids are thrown over the seats during a crash.

- Mark Yarm

credit: GeoSpatial Technologies. 1. BIOMETRIC SCANS

credit:Honeywell. 2. SURVEILLANCE CAMS

credit:GeoSpatial Technologies.3. GPS TRACKERS

credit:Geospatial Technologies.caption_4="3. GPS TRACKERS"

credit:nhtsa.dot.gov.4. SEAT BELTS (Optional)