JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Duval County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Christopher Bernier urged drivers to be more attentive and said the district is launching public safety campaigns after two school buses were struck while stopped at railroad crossings within a week.
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The Florida Department of Transportation said both crashes remain under investigation and that it will evaluate and implement safety improvements if opportunities are identified once those probes conclude.
Bernier said the incidents highlight a broader traffic problem, not a school bus safety failure, and urged motorists to stop driving distracted.
“We need our drivers to drive less distracted,” Bernier said. “I’m not saying I don’t know the incidents of what the drivers were doing at the time of the accident, but just in general, we have to be less distracted, put down our phones and we paint [school buses] yellow and give them big red lights for a reason.”
The district is preparing public service announcements, which Bernier said will be posted on the school system’s website and shared on social media. He said the district’s transportation chief and the school police chief have coordinated on an awareness campaign and discussed the issue at a recent City Council meeting.
DCPS plans to equip about 900 buses with stop-arm cameras, Bernier said, to identify motorists who illegally pass stopped buses. He warned that there will be consequences for drivers who break the law.
On emergency response and communications, Bernier described a process that begins with an alert to the district’s emergency center and an emergency text thread among staff. Schools notify parents with the information available, including where reunification will occur, but he acknowledged that parents still experience panic when their child is involved in a crash.
First responders, Bernier said, sometimes had to cut seat belts to evacuate students quickly. He reiterated that school buses remain one of the safest ways to transport large numbers of children and said the district will continue to educate the public while keeping field trips, including zoo visits, in place.
Bernier urged the community to give stopped buses plenty of distance — similar to the space drivers leave behind emergency vehicles — so children can travel to and from school and activities safely.