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Cabarrus Co. officials attempt to crack down on violators illegally passing school buses

CABARRUS COUNTY, N.C. — A Harrisburg mother recorded a dangerous driver illegally passing a school bus while children were boarding.

It isn't an isolated problem.

Channel 9 discovered 51 drivers illegally blew past stopped school buses in Cabarrus County every day in 2016.

This year, there are 35 violations each day.

[LINK: Rules for when you approach a school bus]

Natalie Wensil said a driver sped past her the other day when she was helping her son board the bus. Her kindergartner has special needs.

"People are careless and they don't realize, with little ones, anything can happen in an instant," Wensil said.

Channel 9 checked bus safety statistics and found the violations happen more than 3,000 times each day in North Carolina.

It can be a challenge for bus drivers to identify lawbreakers, but that's about to change.

Bus cameras can take pictures of drivers’ license plates just like red light cameras.

The governor signed a new bill over the summer that allows districts to slap lawbreakers caught with those cameras with a $400 fine the first offense, $750 the second violation and $1,000 the third time.

Cabarrus County School Transportation Director Art Whittaker hopes adding teeth to the law will finally take a bite out the number of dangerous drivers.

"If you're distracted with email, or have some type of distracted driving, you could conceivably put children's lives in jeopardy," Whittaker said.

Before the district can start fining drivers, they need final approval from city and county leaders. Cabarrus County is rushing to get the green light from them before the end of the school year.

If you are convicted of passing a stopped school bus, you will get hit with five points on your license.

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