 While the Bemidji Police Department is stepping up their enforcement on school bus routes after multiple reports of stop-on violations in the Bemidji School District, reporter Sheryl Moore tells us about Project Stop-On. You may remember this video that showed multiple cars zooming past a school bus while its stop arm was out. The video happened in Bemidji. With these school bus stop-on violations on the rise, the Bemidji Police Department decided to start a new project to maybe catch a few of the drivers. Last Thursday was the first day we rode along with the bus. I had gotten paperwork from the Transportation Department in the school that of all the reported stop-on violations, this bus that we rode on today had the second most violations this year. The project requires two officers. One rides along on the school bus while the other follows along discreetly in the squad car. It's a learning process, but in the future as we continue to do it more, the hopes is to be in the area and if there is a violation, we'll be there to kind of snatch it up. I'm hoping that this story itself will bring more light to the concerns, it's a safety issue for the kids. The good news is there are no violations during today's ride along. Going forward, the bus route in days the police will do the project will be random. The police say they hope the project will act as a deterrent to potential violators. If children are not off the bus yet, it's a citation. If they are off the bus getting on the ground actually leaving the bus or from the ground getting onto the bus, it becomes a gross misdemeanor possibility. The state law states that if you're driving a motor vehicle and the school bus puts its stop arm up and has the flashing red lights, you have to stop. There's no if ands or buts about it, you have to stop. The police have monitored high violation routes in the past, but with this new proactive method, they're hoping more drivers will get the message that any violation of a school bus stop arm is not okay. The biggest problem to this is probably if you are one that violates stop arm violation and you strike a child either killing them or seriously injuring them. I mean that would be on your conscience the rest of your life is just being in a hurry or not paying attention. Reporting of Amidji, Strawmore, Lakeland News. If you witness a stop arm violation, you're encouraged to stop in a safe place and then get a license plate number, vehicle description and driver description if possible, then report the incident to police. If you enjoyed this segment of Lakeland News, please consider making a tax deductible contribution to Lakeland PBS.