Photo courtesy of Flickr user wallyg

It's all part of an initiative set into action by Sadik-Khan in 2008 to reduce traffic fatalities by 3 percent each year through 2030. The new plan announced today will have the city take a multi-step approach. Included is: installing countdown pedestrian signals at 1,500 intersections; re-engineer 60 miles of streets for greater pedestrian safety, according to corridor crash data; re-engineer 20 intersections for pedestrian safety on major two-way streets; launching a pilot program to test the safety performance of neighborhood 20 mph zone; and implementing pilot program to improve visibility at left turns along avenues in Manhattan.

A new program erected earlier this month opens up streets, or more aptly closes them to motorists, for bicyclists on each Saturday in August has also erected national attention.

While debate remains among the city's residents on who is at fault for the spike in pedestrian deaths and serious injuries, whether they be the result of bad drivers or bad bicyclists, some interesting results from the survey are emerging. Especially of note for school transporters, 79 percent of crashes that result in pedestrian fatalities or injuries involve private vehicles and that taxis, trucks and buses are not the main culprits. Also, male students between the ages of 5 and 17 is one of the groups that account for the most pedestrian deaths.

Already implemented city-wide are signs that warn everyone of intersections where there have already been pedestrian fatalities. Also on the rise are the number of slow-traffic zones near schools, which are expected to triple. How this all could positively affect the experience of school children who both walk or bike to and from school as well as those who load and unload the school bus remains to be seen. But, as pointed out, this emerging program is being called the "most statistically ambitious ever undertaken by a U.S. city."

The 14-year study says it's all about improving our individual metabolism. School bus drivers obviously spend a good amount of their shift seated behind the wheel.

Researchers interviewed more than 53,000 men and nearly 70,000 women who were disease free at the beginning of the study and found through follow-up studies that more than 11,300 of the men and almost 8,000 of the women died. And there was a direct correlation to physical activity or lack there of.

After adjusting for smoking, body mass index and other factors, women who sit for more than 6 hours a day  were found to increase their risk of death by 37 percent. Meanwhile, men were 17 percent more likely to shorten their life span.

Perhaps this is reason enough for more school bus operations to consider having their drivers cross with students. California is the only state to require drivers to get out of their seat (after turning off the engine and taking the keys with them) to help children, especially the younger ones cross to and from the bus stop. States all have their own requirements or guidelines, but something to consider when thinking about both the health of the student and of the driver.

And, who knows, maybe the pre-trip and post-trip inspections that look for mechanical anomalies and sleeping kids can be just as beneficial to drivers in lengthening their lives while at the same time lengthening and strengthening their careers.

The program, which has its roots in the American Trucking Association's Highway Watch/School Bus Watch programs, will once again make its way to the hallowed halls of Reno's Grand Sierra Resort on July 28 to concluded the 17th STN EXPO. I suggest, whether you've taken the training or not, to sit through it again. Certification is available, and it's free of charge for all STN EXPO registrants. School bus drivers are one of many groups of "front-line defenders" that can quickly spot irregularities around them.

Roughly half of the students killed each year at school bus stops nationwide fall victim to other vehicles who fail to heed school bus traffic controls, namely the extendable stop arm and flashing red lights. STN contributor and expert witness Ned Einstein (and others) have offered up one reason, that many motorists simply don't know how to proceed when they come across school buses receiving or dispatching students. The problem has risen to a head in Virginia.

There, in Albemarle County in the northern part of the state, school bus drivers, parents and local law enforcement are joining forces to put an end to this dangerous roadway practice. Josh Davis, the director of transportation at Albemarle County Public Schools, told the Daily Progress in Charlottesville that illegal drive bys increase when as winter thaws into spring. In fact, a third of the school year's total violations occur in March and April.

So the district's school buses are being equipped with GPS that reports when and where the vehicles make stops and if the federally-required flashing reds and stop arm are activated to back up illegal passing reports submitted to the police by school drivers.

Albemarle police Cpl. Sean C. Hackney said many motorists he has pulled over have said, "Well, I didn’t know what to do. It happened too fast."

Technology certainly is available to try and curb the actions of these motorists, including a rise in stop arm video cameras that capture the offender's driver license and, in some cases, the driver himself or herself. This summer at the STN EXPO, Jeff Tsai of the Institute of Transportation Research and Education at North Carolina State University will present findings from studies that have taken place in several states and school districts on the effectiveness of such programs.

But more important to stopping these passings are understanding the reasons why drivers do it in the first place. As Cpl. Hackney told the Daily Progress, many drivers simply don't know what to do when they come upon a school bus. Just this morning, on my way to work, I encountered a school bus stopped on the other side of the street, one I often see picking up school children. I know to proceed with caution because the driver doesn't cross the kids, so she only activates the bus' flashing yellow lights and doesn't extend the stop arm. But, I see other motorists slam on their brakes, or at least slow down to a touch-and-go on the gas pedal. I can just tell they're second-guessing themselves as whether to proceed or stop.

This demonstrates the crux of the problem. When I took driver's ed, there was plenty of discussion on what to do when emergency vehicles activate their sirens (not that many drivers anymore heed them) and which vehicle has the right of way at unsignalized intersections (again, not that many drivers do the correct thing). But certainly there was no mention in my course about school bus drivers, and in speaking with friends and family members, they never received school bus training, either.

Additionally, when we all see stop signs or flashing red lights, they mean to us that we're supposed to stop, look both ways and then proceed. Few people actually come to complete stops anymore, but we know the intent of the law. So, logically, motorists who don't know the law will behave in the same manner when they come upon a school bus with it's flashing reds and the stop arm. This can have deadly consequences.

Increasing student ridership, attempting to secure more funding for transportation and curing all of the other ills that adversely affect school bus operations certainly are important. But public outreach continues to be one of the industry's few failures. Many transportation departments also administer or assist with high school driver's ed curriculum. Are school districts ingraining school bus laws into their own student's heads so that, when they become drivers, they'll know how to respond? To me, this seems to be the least costly, most efficient and truly most educational way to change driver behavior.

Most states have a database of registered sex crime offenders. Not only do parents want to know where these criminals live, so do schools. Many of the states have laws that require these criminals to not move within 1,000 feet or so of school campuses, parks or other places where children are known to congregate. This can include school bus stops. But, of course, if sex offenders already live nearby schools or bus stops, there's little authorities can do besides notifying the community.

No such law exists in Arizona.

So, the Arizona Daily Star in Tucson recently decided to compare the state Department of Public Safety's map of the the most dangerous sex offenders with school bus routes in the area. In full disclosure, I used to write for the Arizona Daily Star, and I know the area and school districts well. But the few people there I still know did not put me on to the report. Yet, obviously, I still found the results interesting.

The paper only uncovered three stops that are nearby registered offenders, which shows that, despite not being required to, local transportation departments are seemingly doing a very thorough job to prevent students from having to congregate for the school bus in areas where they could be in danger of abduction. Still, as we know, it only takes one incident to lead to tragedy.

The location of school bus stops nearby the homes of registered sex offenders could outrage some parents. But a spokeswoman for Marana Unified School District on the northwest outskirts of Tucson said that only one parent complained and asked for a new stop after being notified of a sex predator.

The two other stops found to be near sex predators are under the jurisdiction of Sunnyside Unified School District. A spokeswoman told the Star that both stops are safe and are located at central locations in communities that are not at the doorstep of a particular residence.

Do you know where your school bus stops are?