First Student’s Al Chang demonstrates how the Tyler Drive tablet goes to a locked screen that shows minimal information while the bus is in motion.
In fact, the Indiana Department of Education told School
Transportation News that the current specification calls for the display to go dark while in motion and become live each time the bus stops, but the driver could still receive turn-by-turn directions. “The state school bus committee is looking at reconsidering the spec to allow the displays to be active to accommodate different information input for drivers who might have difficulty with oral-only instructions,” said Press Secretary Adam Baker. When it comes to buying tablets, Myers is remaining
cautious. He uses Edulog for routing and the OnCom- mand Connection diagnostic system for his IC Bus fleet, which he said is a tremendous help to his technicians. “We’ve had six tablets at a time out there on routes, so we’re looking before we leap. Our budget can only han- dle so much technology. If we make the wrong decision, we’re going to harm rather than help ourselves.” For Roosevelt Elementary School District in Phoenix,
Transportation Supervisor Kerry Duskin is bringing his operation into the 21st century one step at a time. “In Arizona, the tablets have to go black when the bus is moving, so our [substitute drivers] must have a paper route sheet. But when I started here three years ago, they had no technology at all. They used Google maps and paper for routes,” explained Duskin. “Getting technology in place has been a life changing experience for us. Daily inspections are now done on a tablet.” The district uses Zonar’s Connect tablet, which allows
48 School Transportation News • SEPTEMBER 2019
the drivers to select defects on the tablet and transmit the data directly to the garage for follow up. Duskin’s team also offers Synovia’s Here Comes the Bus app to parents. They can see the location of their children’s buses in real-time on their smartphone or tablet. Duskin said these have helped cut down on the num- ber of phone calls to the transportation department.
Answers at Your Fingertips In Delaware, Kelly Shahan is using TripSpark to run
the Red Clay Consolidated School District transportation department more efficiently. The fleet is comprised of 100 district buses and about 40 contractor buses. “I am very fortunate to be in a district where administrators recognize the national driver shortage,” she said. “We’ve been doing three-tier routes for a while now, and technology helps us provide the level of excellence our students deserve.” Shahan explained that she can run statistics reports that
show district runs are between 92- to 99-percent on time every day, because the tablets have time tracking. “It’s a game changer, to be empowered with the knowledge of where all of our buses” have real-time GPS, she added. “We’ve even been able to prove that none of our buses hit a car because we know their location every minute.” Shahan said she also loves the data for back-up when she has a parent who insists the bus be sent back, or claims that it never arrived. “I can tell that parent that the bus was there on time, sat for 30 seconds and left. They
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68
