LED signage from SoundOff Commercial Vehicle Solutions spells out to motorists what to do, or not do, when encountering a school bus stop.
“She was supposed to
come report to me at least once a week, but she usually did every day. She reported
that dozens of illegal passes were
down to two or three,” Vrabel said. “Te (extra lights) can be seen from a greater distance. Tey absolutely make a difference.” He said the test results were a big hit among NAPT and
NASDPTS attendees. His goal is to see the new pattern of LEDs become an approved option in Ohio, with the potential for being a construction standard on all buses. “I think it’s going to catch on,” Vrabel predicted. He acknowledged the monetary cost of retrofitting the district’s 846 buses would be high, but added that he’ll be applying for grant funding to make that happen. Meanwhile, Lt. Reimer told STN that he expects final approval of the bus by this summer to allow school districts to retrofit the vehicle to the specifications, or order it as a new option from manufacturers. Roman Gaines, product line manager of Weldon Vehicle Light- ing at IDEX Corp., said LED lighting has come a long way since its earliest days. Initial excitement about the technology’s long life was quickly replaced by frustration with products that had sub-par
quality and a higher price than traditional incandescent lights. But those days are long gone—aided in part by the rigors of the long-haul trucking industry. “It helps that we’re a supplier to the truck world, as well as the
bus market, in terms of testing and perfecting products. Some of the reliability rigor comes from the truck side,” Gaines said. “Buses aren’t on the road as much as trucks, but they sit in the sun and they’re also subjected to road salt, salty coastal environments and all of the other factors that come into play,” Gaines said. “If (LEDs) are expected to last for years on buses, a number of factors have to be accounted for, and that’s where the years of experience with trucks comes into play.” Bill Wakefield, vice president and general manager of SoundOff Commercial Vehicle Solutions, said the transition from incandescent to LED lighting is happening at an increasing rate, precisely because of the latter’s longer life cycles, lower lifetime cost, durability and reliability. “Some folks are still looking at the acquisition cost instead of the lifetime costs. But, many more customers understand the total cost of ownership. Tey’ve embraced it and made the change quickly,” he said.
Continued on page 49
QUAL IT Y MAT TERS
See Us At Booth #607
www.stnonline.com 47
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