School BUSRide spoke with National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) Chair Jennifer Homendy. Homendy is the 15th chair of the NTSB after being nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate. Created in 1967, the NTSB is an independent federal agency charged by Congress with investigating every civil aviation accident in the United States and […]
Stop-arm violations are an incredibly critical issue for the school bus industry. We have all heard the troubling stories associated with cars not stopping for school buses with stop arms extended. Pupil transportation professionals know the situation is dire, yet it often takes a tragedy to initiate expenditure and awareness discussions between districts, law enforcement, […]
School BUSRide spoke with David Cooper, industry engagement manager for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), about the role of DHS/TSA in pupil transportation, the many programs which are specialized for pupil transportation, and how school bus professionals can be proactive in security matters. Tell us a little […]
“Essential workers.” “First people children see every day.” “Critical to children’s education.” Most of us have said these things, with good cause, about our school bus drivers…which makes the current rash of violent acts against drivers so hard to reconcile. As the 2021-22 school year nears the first quarter mark, it has been marked by […]
By Deirdre O’Brien Technology and grassroots efforts join forces to increase safety outside the bus Students outside the school bus are far more vulnerable to risk of injury than those on-board the bus. And the risk to students outside the bus is rising every year, according to annual injury statistics. The 2018-19 school year saw […]
Are you really doing everything you can to make sure the children in your care are getting safely to and from school? Yes, state governments mandate that no child shall be left on a school vehicle. And school districts and transportation contractors require extensive training for drivers. They also equip their vehicles with cameras and […]
By Peter Mannella Several years ago, at an annual conference I was planning in New York, I invited a guest speaker who specialized in child and family social trends and conditions. My intention was for her to share information with the pupil transportation professionals in the room about the children who get our attention […]
More than half a century of changes, and quite a few shower curtains later, Laural Hayes will finally retire from the school transportation profession. In 1968, The Beatles were at the top of the charts, a postage stamp cost 6 cents, Apollo 8 orbited the moon for the first time, and Laural Voelker stepped into […]
Earlier this year the National Safety Transportation Board (NTSB) released a safety report documenting their findings of an investigation into four electric vehicle fires involving high-voltage, lithium-ion batteries. Dr. Peter Lawrence, CDPT, Ed.D., sat down with Dr. Thomas Barth, Survival Factors Investigator and Biomechanics Engineer at the NTSB, to discuss the impacts of this report […]
When you hear about risk management, what is your first thought? Is it lawyers and insurance brokers, and lots of paperwork? If those are the images recalled, it is time to rethink risk and where it comes from. Risk is often perceived as something to be afraid of because the consequences can often be devastating […]