INDUSTRY CONNECTIONS
IC Bus ‘Route’ Magazine Extends Conversation Beyond
Product Line IC Bus, the school- and commercial-bus divi-
sion of Navistar, in April published its inaugural Spring edition of “Route” magazine to bring cus- tomers a unique company and employee perspec- tive of student transportation. Mark Johnson, marketing director for Navistar Global Bus, told STN the idea originated to bring a new kind of conversation to its owners and oper- ators of IC school buses. Te publication showcases topics he said are relevant to the school-bus industry that the company’s customers, dealers and its own
employees beyond the normal sales cycle. “Route” will be published semi-annually. “IC Route gives IC Bus a unique opportunity to speak with our customers in a way that
goes beyond simply talking about our products,” he added. In an opening column, IC Bus President John McKinney writes that the company hopes
its articles helps customers get to know the company even better as it shares new and inter- esting industry perspectives. Features in the first edition include profiles on four of IC Bus’ most successful dealers — Hoglund Bus, Leonard Bus, Leeds Transit and Maxim Truck & Trailer — plus a tour of the IC Bus plant in Tulsa, Okla. Other features include an “Out of the Office” look at company employee Mike Phillips, an IC Bus planner by day and skydiver by weekend, and a conversation with school bus driver Betty “B.J.” Simmons-Talley of Columbus (Ohio) City School District.
MAINE TRANSPORTATION DIRECTOR RECEIVES EPA LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
Te U.S. EPA awarded Kevin Mallory of Portland Public KEVIN MALLORY
Schools its Lifetime Achievement Award for reducing school-bus emissions over the past decade. Maine Clean Communities nominated Mallory, who joined Portland Public Schools in 1996. In 2001, the Portland district was also first in the state to establish and enforce a no-idling policy for school buses. Te district worked with the city to designate Portland as a “Clean Air Zone” and to extend the reduced-idling policies beyond the schools. Te district was one of the first in the nation to retrofit its buses with pollution control equipment from the EPA. In 2006, Portland PS replaced three diesel buses with
buses running on compressed natural gas (CNG) that were purchased with money from a Clean Cities grant. Te district replaced seven additional diesel buses with cleaner-burning CNG buses purchased with assistance from Maine Department of Environmental Protec- tion (DEP) grants. Mallory said the DEP has “kept us in the dough, so to speak,” with grant money. At this writ-
ing, the district had a total fleet of 24 school buses and six vans. By the end of the summer, he said 13 of the buses would be powered by CNG, making the district’s fleet 50-percent “green.” “We didn’t start this program to save money, and we didn’t start it to be trend setter. We
started it because 700 kids in the Portland Schools had active asthma in 2002,” Mallory said. “We did it to improve air quality around schools, and around and inside the buses. In that regard, we did what we set out to do.”
30 School Transportation News August 2013 Ü BIZ BITES
SchoolWheels Direct, Inc., a subsidiary of Student Transporta- tion Inc., announced that more than 10 Brevard County, Fla., millennium, magnet and choice schools have implemented the company's new routing service … Dealer LBS South recently expanded to South Flori- da with a new bus sales, parts and customer support facility in Davie to serve the company’s IC Bus brand vehicles and Trans Tech Bus fleets … Tyler Technologies, Inc. signed a contract for its Versatrans student transportation management solution with Shelby County Schools, now the largest district in Tennessee after a consolidation with Memphis City Schools … The National Safety Council recognized school-bus contractor First Student with the 2013 Occupa- tional Safety Excellence Achievement Award … School-bus contractor Apple Bus Company expanded its Midwest presence by acquiring Mid America Transportation, a deal that consists of 20 school-district customers around Kansas City … For the seventh year in a row, Ford named Starcraft Bus the top-volume pool account in the bus category, as the company purchased and sold more Ford E350/E450 and F550/F650 bus chassis than any other bus manufacturer in America … Rosco, Inc. partnered with McNeil & Company, Inc. to create a complete Dual-Vision XC fleet risk management program for its company fleets … Pe- terson Manufacturing Company was awarded the silver certification for 2012 through Caterpillar Inc.’s Supplier Quality Excellence Process … Orbit Software reached an agreement with learning company Pearson to provide customers of the PowerSchool stu- dent information system with direct access to the BusBoss routing solu- tion … Eduardo Bibiloni, a technician for Durham School Services, placed second among 75 mechanics in the Texas Association of School Bus Me- chanics best-tech competition in San Antonio … Blue Bird added Anderson Blue Bird Bus Sales of New England to its dealer network.
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