Drivers Illegally Passing CNY School Buses Will Get Tix By Mail

You may have heard recent reports of speeding tickets being issued to drivers going too fast in New York construction zones. Soon, mailed tickets will also be sent to those who illegally pass school buses.

Oneida County officials have announced nine-area school districts will be participating in the program to ticket drivers who pass buses that illegally pass school buses who activate their red flashing lights and have the stop-arm extended.

Technology called Verra Mobility CrossingGuard will record the vehicle and license plate if a driver passes with the stop-arm extended, whether it be in the morning when students are getting onto the bus, or in the afternoon when they are being dropped off at home.

Bluberries

“We are excited about this collaboration between the Oneida County School Districts and Verra Mobility,” said Oneida County Sheriff Robert Maciol. “Our priority is to keep our students safe, and this program is an important component of our traffic safety efforts. This new technology will, no doubt, enhance the safety of our community by protecting students when they are most vulnerable entering and exiting the school bus. We strongly advise drivers to stop for the school bus stop-arm.”

A total of 191 buses from the following area school districts will be equipped with this technology:

New York Mills School District
New Hartford Central School District
Rome City School District
Sauquoit Valley Central School District
Westmoreland Central School District
Whitesboro Central School District
Waterville Central School District
Holland Patent Central School District
Adirondack Central School District

The announcement came Monday morning at Sauquoit Valley Central School. The program will begin with a 35 day warning period. Officials say through June 11, anyone who violates the law regarding passing a stopped school bus will be issued a warning. Beginning June 12 and going forward, violations will be issued by mail.

Kristine Bellino

Under current state law, the penalty for a first violation can run you run a fine as high as $250. That penalty can be as high as $1,000 for repeat offenders, and a vehicle owner who is convicted of three violations within three-years could have their driver's license revoked for six months or more, officials said.

The violation video and license plate images will be reviewed by the Oneida County Sheriff’s Office for approval prior to a warning or citation being issued, officials said.

Top 10 Baby Names Of 2023 For New York

Each year, the Social Security Administration publishes the totals for the first names from all Social Security card applications for births that occurred in the US since 1880. The publication is the most complete record of first name usage in the United States. Because Social Security can take quite a while to compile data on the most popular baby names for each year, Names.org has used data on the actual births in recent years to predict the most popular baby names of 2023.

Here's a look at what they have for the Top 10 boys, or girls names. Granted, you can have gender neutral names too. This is predicting their data:

50 Restaurants That Aren't In Utica New York Anymore That You Loved

Which restaurants in the Utica, Rome, and Syracuse area do you miss the most? Whether they have been closed for a short time, or decades, which ones do you love? A group on Facebook will be the ones to thank for the following memories. The Facebook group "I remember when... Utica, NY" recently had a post with the text: Name a restaurant that's not in Utica anymore that you liked.

Here's the top 50: