School bus camera violations ‘on hold’ for Miami drivers who contest them. What to know

Miami Herald | By Clara-Sophia Daly | March 11, 2025

Miami-Dade drivers fed up with school bus camera tickets

A Miami Herald/Tributary investigation found that Miami area drivers were receiving bogus tickets from the school district’s bus safety program, and had no way to fight them.

The Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office said Monday that school bus stop-arm violations would be put on hold for all drivers who wish to contest their ticket, a move aimed at addressing the chaos following the roll out of the school district’s hastily-approved contract with school bus safety company, BusPatrol America. To take advantage of the temporary reprieve, drivers must contest their violation at a website, alertbus.com.

The bad news, though, is that the sheriff’s statement didn’t provide any answers for drivers who were ticketed while driving on the other side of a raised median and just paid the violation. “As to the median citations already paid, fees were never collected by the Sheriff’s Office,” the statement reads. “Therefore, we don’t have legal purview concerning the payments already made. All payments were collected directly through BusPatrol.” The sheriff department’s statement follows an investigation by the Miami Herald and the nonprofit newsroom The Tributary, which revealed that the tickets were being issued in error and challenges were going unheard.

Screenshot of a post on X from the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office regarding the school bus safety program, posted at 10 p.m. on March 10, 2025.

The Herald/Tributary investigation found that many Miami-Dade drivers were ticketed by the school district’s bus safety program while driving on the opposite side of a raised median from a stopped school bus. That’s legal, but they got the $225 ticket anyway. On Friday, the sheriff’s office issued a statement saying they would be suspending median violations but didn’t indicate whether drivers who had already paid would get any reprieve.

A screenshot of Robert Strongarone’s car, circled on the upper right, that was on his Notice of Violation from BusPatrol. In the screenshot it’s clear his car was driving on the opposite side of street with a raised median.

BusPatrol America, the vendor in the program, did not respond to the Herald/Tributary’s questions in time for publishing about whether the company would provide refunds for those who paid median violations. Steve Randazzo, Chief Growth Officer at the company, said that BusPatrol does not make “enforcement decisions” or “act in any discretionary manner around ticketing” when the Herald/Tributary asked for a statement last week after the Sheriff suspended all action on median violations.

The school district said it would respond to questions about refunds from program revenue but did not issue a statement in time for publication.

The Herald/Tributary investigation also found that when drivers tried to fight the violations, they were stuck in limbo waiting for a court date that never came. Previously drivers who wanted to contest their violation had to mail in a form to an address in Virginia. Often drivers would just pay the fine. It’s unclear how many drivers have been improperly ticketed, but school district figures for revenue and violations indicate the number could be substantial: In total, the program is issuing around 400 violations per day and generated more than $20 million as of last month.

As of Dec. 19, the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office had issued 120,000 notices of violation to Miami-Dade drivers who allegedly illegally passed by a school bus. The fines are $225

Barby Rodriguez, the Chief of Staff at the Clerk of Courts and Comptroller, said that as of this morning, the sheriff’s office has filed 1,364 contestations in the statewide E-Filing portal. She added that the Clerk does not schedule the hearings and that it would fall under the purview of the courts.

A spokesperson for the 11th Judicial Circuit did not respond to questions about the scheduling of these hearings in time for publishing.

The school bus safety program is a collaboration between the school district, the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office, and BusPatrol, which was awarded the contract by the school district.

BusPatrol installed cameras on all Miami-Dade school buses to catch motorists in the act of illegally passing a school bus with its “stop-arm” extended. As of Dec. 19, 120,000 drivers had received violation notices in Miami-Dade County for illegally passing extended school bus “stop arms.” BusPatrol gets most of the revenue – 70%, although that cut will be reduced to 60% after two years. The school district receives the rest and is supposed to spend it on bus safety.