HEADLINES
EMT Delivers Specialized, Customized Transportation
By Stephane Babcock Fourteen years ago, a small company
sprung up in the St. Louis metro area that offered non-emergency transportation to the community, including school children. Within a short time, it scooped up a
contract with St. Louis Public Schools to transport special needs students that did not fall on the normal bus route. “Tis enabled the school district to save
thousands of dollars a year by utilizing our service instead of using traditional bus ser- vice. It also afforded those children with special needs the opportunity to obtain re- liable transportation to and from school,” said Bernie Squitieri, owner
of Express
Medical Transporters. “Our commitment to quality and caring service is genuine.”
Squitieri began the business in 1996
with one vehicle and has been able to grow his business to include 150 vehicles that serve a 150-mile radius of the St. Louis area and beyond. EMT also offers wheelchair accessible vehicles and has set procedures in place to care for children with very specific needs, including men- tally challenged children. “We have found that consistency with
the same driver picking up the same student each day motivates children, spe- cifically mentally challenged children, to go to school every day,” added Squitieri. After dealing with a handful of taxicab
companies that did not conduct them- selves in a “professional manner,” Vicky
Frayne, a member of the purchased servic- es department at Francis Howell School District in St. Charles, began using EMT. “I deal with the transportation of thou-
sands of students everyday to and from school, community work programs and other education programs located out- side of our district’s attendance area and I rely heavily on the expertise of EMT’s service and caring personnel,” said Frayne. Stefanie Treadway, educational director
for the Center for Autism Education, in nearby O’Fallon, also contracts with EMT to alleviate any worries that she had in the past when setting up transportation for the students she serves who have been di- agnosed with autism spectrum disorders and developmental disabilities and can have severe and challenging behaviors. “EMT took the time and initiative to
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32 School Transportation News Magazine March 2010
go through training to understand indi- viduals with autism and other challenging behaviors. Tey continue to effectively communicate any safety concerns, future training opportunities for staff and pro- vide trained aides to help assist students in their vehicles,” said Treadway. According to Squitieri, EMT has also
seen an increase in business due to the No Child Left Behind Act and the McK- inney-Vento Act. Locally, EMT has seen a 300 percent increase in homeless student transportation in the last five years. “We also know the need is not just in
Missouri, but it is in most states in the U.S.,” said Squitieri, “and EMT wants to be every school district’s first choice to help reduce transportation costs by utilizing our services as well as current bus services.” In 2007, EMT franchised its service be-
cause it could not keep up with the demand needed throughout the country. “We do not want to replace the tra- yellow bus
ditional service; however,
we would like to strategically work to- gether in order to provide high quality transportation at the most economical price,” added Squitieri. n
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