Rockland County Calls Out RCBJ

In an unprecedented move, the County of Rockland has issued a press release in response to what they call “Misleading Coverage” of the Bus Safety Program by Tina Traster of Rockland County Business Journal, a blog that discusses   Rockland. Ms. Traster’s coverage of the Bus Safety Program began following her receipt of a Notice of Violation from the program. 

When individuals receive a Notice of Violation, or NOV, they are given a link to view three stills and three videos of their violation. According to Ms. Traster, her NOV was incorrectly issued. In an article posted to Rockland County Business Journal, Ms. Traster states “When I logged on, I found three still images of my vehicle (which showed nothing) and three videos of the so-called violation. I knew instantly the evidence pointed to my innocence because in one video my car had already moved past the school bus stop sign two seconds before it flipped outward. A second showed my car passing the bus three seconds before the bus’s electronic arm juts out.”

The County states that this is incorrect, alleging that “It is abundantly clear from the video, which County personnel viewed and evaluated prior to issuance of the Violation, that the bus stopped and put on its flashing red lights.  Those lights were on for at least 5 to 6 seconds before Ms. Traster’s vehicle drove by without even slowing.  Of those 5 to 6 seconds, approximately 3 seconds passed after the bus’ stop arm was fully deployed. She didn’t slow down when the bus came to a stop, she didn’t slow down when the red flashing lights came on, and she wasn’t slowing down as she passed the bus.” 

According to New York State law and Vehicle and Traffic Law § 1174-a, drivers are prohibited from driving past a school bus displaying its red flashing lights regardless of whether or not the stop arm is fully extended or even extended at all. 

The law does not mention the bus’s stop sign specifically or if they register the stop sign in the same category as the electronic arm. According to the county, this standard is the same standard as if a police officer witnessed the offense.

Each violation captured by Bus Patrol is reviewed by Bus Patrol employees and local law enforcement before a NOV is issued. These officers are the same law enforcement officers who would be in charge of pulling over drivers should they make a similar violation in front of their patrol car.

While Ms. Traster states that the “evidence pointed to her innocence” due to her allegedly passing the bus two seconds before the bus’s stop sign flipped outward and three seconds before the bus’s electronic arm jutted out, she does not mention flashing lights and has, up to time of publication, refused to release the video she references. While the county is unable to publish the video for legal reasons, Ms. Traster has full rights to publish the video. 

Ms. Traster states in her article that when she arrived to contest the ticket on December 11th, she was informed by a lawyer from Rockland County that the ticket was dismissed. 

The County states the case was dismissed not because Ms. Traster did not commit the violation, but because the State DOT had failed to send the necessary documents in time – a common occurrence with the state’s backlogged courts. Ms. Traster was released with a warning. 

The county refutes Ms. Traster’s claims that a large percentage of cases brought to court are dismissed. The county states that this is not due to a lack of a violation, but to a merciful attitude of the judge presiding over the case. “One hundred percent of the cases drivers have brought to court, even those found in favor of the driver, show a violation of the law… We agree that some judges think drivers may not have had a “fair” chance to notice the lights, or to slow and stop… But just because some judges are not applying the law strictly, does not mean the driver did not violate the law. It just means the court was merciful.”

It is important to note that Rockland County is not alone in implementing stop-arm safety enforcement. Neighboring counties and districts are expanding similar programs in response to rising numbers of drivers illegally passing stopped school buses. This program was free for the county to implement, and is funded entirely by violators.

According to the county, data from the approximately 40,000 violations that have been issued to vehicle owners indicate the program saw a 30.5% decrease in citations issued at the start compared to the end of the 2024-25 school year.  In addition, 90+% of violators don’t receive a second violation.  

Most recently, Ms. Traster has sent a release out to her readers claiming that Rockland County is “brazenly attacking local journalism,” and accuses the county of writing incoherently and intimidating local journalists. She ends this email requesting that readers support the RCBJ with a monthly financial commitment of $25.