Edinburg ISD says federal grant funds enforcement against drivers who pass stopped school buses

Edinburg ISD transportation and police officials told the school board that a federal traffic-safety grant is funding local enforcement to stop drivers who illegally pass stopped school buses.

The presentation at the March board meeting was led by Nisto Barbosa, the district’s director of transportation, and included remarks from Chief Ricardo Perez and Superintendent Carlos Salinas. Barbosa said the district applied for and received a National Highway Traffic Safety Administration grant administered through a company called TalkCell.com and began deploying local officers in January to ticket drivers who pass stopped buses.

Barbosa said the district applied after hearing a federal official describe a study to reduce illegal passing, and that Edinburg ISD was one of only two Texas school districts selected. "We transport the future today," Barbosa told the board, saying the program aims to change driver behavior and protect students.

Chief Ricardo Perez described field enforcement and education efforts and said the problem is widespread in the district. "We're doing it for the safety of our kids," Superintendent Carlos Salinas added, asking the public to share the safety message.

District figures presented to the board said the program had 45 available deployments under the grant, with roughly 20–23 deployments completed to date. Officials said more than 200 citations had been issued; the presenters gave a ticket range of about $500 to $1,250. Barbosa told the board the grant covered roughly $95,000 to pay officers for pre- and post-school deployments and said the funding does not come out of local tax revenue.

Board members viewed video footage of an enforcement stop; presenters said enforcement teams combine traffic stops with community education, and that Spanish-language outreach has been part of the effort. Officials said the district covers about 945 square miles and described the deployments as intended to reduce the risk of a bus-related injury or fatality.

The board took no formal action on the presentation. Officials asked the public to notify family and neighbors about the law: when red stop-arm lights are flashing on a stopped school bus, drivers must stop.

The district’s transportation director and police at the meeting stressed that the deployments are both enforcement and education and that the program will continue while grant funding lasts.