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very school bus driver has at least one story of how a route went terribly wrong. A student who got off at the wrong stop


and was temporarily lost. Stories of drivers themselves getting lost or missing stops. Having six addresses left on the paper route sheet, with one kindergartener left on the bus who says, “I live in the white house.” All the houses are white. With today’s technology, these neg-


ative experiences could be avoided. Potential school bus driver applicants might not yet realize just how side- ways a route can go, but they might worry about getting lost with a bus full of rowdy children, especially if they are new to the area. They might foresee children taking advantage of anonymity to get off at the wrong stop or even ride the wrong bus. Katrina Falk, director of transpor-


tation for Shelby Eastern Schools in Shelbyville, Indiana, has plenty of experience with how things can go wrong from her years behind the wheel. “I’ve been in districts that had routing software, so drivers got a planned route, a roster and a map,” she recalled. “I’ve also worked where there were owner/operators who bid on routes. They had an area to bid on, but not set routes, so they bid high, not knowing exactly what the route would entail.” When she arrived in Shelbyville as a


driver, she said she was given a list of students and phone numbers. Then, she had to figure out her own route. “I wasn’t from the area, so that was


a bit of added stress, especially since it was a special-needs run and I had to call parents and tell them the approxi- mate time I’d be there,” she added. When asked if she now uses technology to attract new drivers in her role as Shelbyville’s transporta- tion leader, Falk said that knowing there was technology backing them up helped alleviate a lot of anxiety. “We’re a small district, just 19 routes,


and most of the time, I’ll ride with them as co-pilot if I can. I don’t like just throwing them out there, but the technology definitely helps. “There can be a lot of stress on


children on the first day of school, especially if they are new to the area, or that school,” she continued. “They might have never ridden a bus before, so any technology that adds safety, that gives confidence to my drivers, especially substitutes, I’m 100-percent in favor of. And our school board is as well.” Once Falk implemented


Transfinder routing technology, replacing the huge binders containing hand-written notes that had been used previously, the overlaps and inefficiencies were very apparent. Falk said those problems weren’t obvious until the routing software revealed them. In one case, there were three different drivers on the same street. “Our drivers were very reluctant


to adopt the technology at first. But when they got their first packet of route sheets with rosters and phone numbers, they came on board,” she said. “The substitutes have given it a great reception. We’re looking at adding Wayfinder next. We could call a substitute ahead of time, and they’ll be able to look at the route on their own device ahead of time, even from home.” Meanwhile, Cody Cox is heading


up one of the fastest growing districts in the country north of Houston. “The answer is both yes and no on technology getting applicants in the door,” said Cox, the director of trans- portation for Cleveland Independent School District. “We do explain in the interview process that we have tablets that walk them through the pre-trip, give directions, the number of students, and all of the information they need. But a big plus for us is that almost every bus has a monitor that knows the route and the students. We


28%


Transportation directors/ supervisors who said new technology is viewed as a recruiting tool.


(Out of 172 responses.)


Are school bus drivers quick


to adapt to the implementation of new technology?


7%


Yes, right away


27 66%%


No, it takes a year or more


Yes, after training


(Out of 173 responses.)


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