New York lawmakers are calling for new safety provisions for school buses in the state in order to cut down on crashes and illegal passing by other vehicles. 

A bill announced Wednesday by Brooklyn Democratic state Sen. Andrew Gounardes would require school buses across the state to have two stop-arm attachments, one on the driver's side and another on the passenger side. 

The hope is that doubling the number of required stop-arm mechanisms on a bus will in effect double the visibility for drivers the bus has been stopped and be required to wait behind it. 

There are about 50,000 illegal passes of school buses every day school is in session in New York and most occur when a bus is stopped to pick up or drop off kids, Gounardes said. 

“Putting school children at risk with reckless driving and illegal passing is unacceptable, and we must do whatever we can to ensure that these practices come to an end,” he said. “Doubling the number of stop-arms on school buses is a common-sense measure that will result in lives being saved across New York State, and I look forward to passing this legislation into law.” 

All buses are required to have at least one stop-arm on the driver's side to notify drivers of other vehicles it has stopped and is either picking up or dropping off students. 

New York has recently enhanced the fines and penalties for drivers who illegally pass stopped buses, including a $1,000 fine for a third conviction within three years. Five points are added to a driver's license for each conviction. 

In 2019, lawmakers authorized school districts and local governments to use stop-arm cameras to photograph drivers' vehicles when they pass a stopped bus.