The Alachua County Sheriff’s Office (ACSO) is participating in Operation Bluebird, a traffic safety initiative focused on school bus safety, during National School Bus Safety and Awareness Week from Oct. 19-23.
According to an ACSO release, members of the Sheriff’s Office Traffic Unit and Juvenile Relations Bureau will take part in the operation. Deputies will patrol school bus stops in marked and unmarked vehicles and monitor for violations that put students at risk, including speeding in school zones and failing to stop for a school bus displaying its stop sign and flashing red lights.
The Alachua County Public Schools 2026-27 school year began Aug. 10, with about 28,000 students enrolled. Nearly half of those students ride one of the district’s roughly 250 school buses.
Through the operation, ACSO aims to hold drivers accountable for dangerous driving, raise awareness of the risks students face while boarding and exiting buses, and reinforce the importance of following school bus safety laws.
The agency urged all drivers to slow down, stay alert in school zones and always stop when required for a school bus.