because before you leave the yard, you’re going to make sure the bus is clear and free of snow, anyway.”
Could LED Technology Improve Even More? Ragunathan suggested improvement can occur in differ-
ent ways. “There’s no doubt that costs have come down, and I think it can get better in the sense of light dimensions. As an industry, we’re stuck in certain dimensions, whether it’s a four-inch, five-inch, eight-inch, or whatever size you want to choose, and certain lights are defined by that surface area, as well,” he said. “Could we get the same intensity with a smaller footprint light? It’s quite possible. The technology is there, but we’ve not gone there because some of our specifi- cations are written around a specific diameter.” Ragunathan contends that deploying smaller lights
with the same lumens would deliver additional benefits. “If instead of a 15-inch circumference you have a 12- inch, 10-inch or six-inch circumference then you have a little less area where salt can get in, so you certainly could see less corrosion,” he explained. Kissel is intrigued by the possibilities. “I like that for-
ward-thinking. I like it a ton,” he said. He added exterior lighting could be more effective if
a set of rear lights are lowered to the windshield level of passenger vehicles. “I’ve been rear-ended multiple times.
It just amazes me because I’m in a giant yellow bus with blinking lights, but we can only control what we can control,” Kissel said. “The other guy’s got to do his part, too. But what I’m saying is, if we dropped a set down to windshield height for the average car or pickup truck, would that makes us better seen?” Ragunathan foresees the day when all bus lighting will be LEDs, particularly because the technology draws less power from a bus’s charging system. “With LEDs it does help because you do have more electronics and more parasitic electrical loads on today’s vehicle,” he said. “So, that’s another advantage with the LED lighting. There’re more the lumens versus the candle power, where you have more intensity and a better output.” Kissel said the issue of parasitic power drain takes on
an added dimension for his vehicles because of Arizo- na’s frequently scorching temperatures. “Think about what buses have added in my lifetime –
video cameras, tablet-mounted GPS for student tracking, a scanner to scan their IDs and additional electronics. That’s an issue that everybody from California to Maine has to address. Then we have the issue of air conditioning that would be sufficient for other states, but not Arizona,” he explained. “By changing to all those LED lights, I’m putting less demand on the power of the bus.” ●
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36 School Transportation News • MARCH 2026
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