The air is thin where you toil. A minor slip can lead to tragedy. Public expectation is high, sometimes too high, especially when you consider the limited resources at your disposal. Few people outside the industry understand the day-to-day challenges of running a school transportation program, large or small. You accept these conditions and actually embrace them. You campaign for safety through diligent driver and passenger training and community awareness programs. You support a strong maintenance program. You buy the best equipment. You challenge your entire staff to suggest ways to improve the operation. And you listen to them. That’s why we’ve created “Great Fleets Across America” — to recognize school bus operators like you.

We say ‘great,’ not ‘greatest’
Note that we didn’t title this section “Greatest Fleets Across America.” That would be presumptuous. The fleets profiled in this section certainly are among the best and the brightest, but we’re not crowning them as “the greatest.” What we’re trying to do is recognize top-notch fleets that are providing safe and efficient school transportation. This industry receives so little positive notice that we thought it was time to create some of our own. Identifying school transportation programs around the country that meet high standards in the areas of safety, training and maintenance was easy. Narrowing down the candidates to just one in each state was much more challenging. Without first-hand knowledge of these operations, we relied on recommendations by state directors of pupil transportation, state pupil transportation and contractor associations and members of our Editorial Advisory Board. Our thanks to everyone who provided input. Your assistance was invaluable. Don’t fret if you believe that your program was overlooked. Next year could be your turn. Yes, we plan to reprise this section in 2000. And next time around, we’re going to open up the nomination process. We’ll begin publishing a nomination form next spring. Remember, it’s never too early to start thinking of ways to improve your program. You might also want to “borrow” ideas from this year’s Great Fleets. Just in case you’re too busy to read through all 50 profiles in this issue, I’ll summarize some of the traits shared by many of the selected fleets.

• Year-round driver recruitment

• Strong emphasis on customer service

• Mechanics urged to attain ASE certification

• Drivers encouraged to participate in roadeos

• Conscientious preventive maintenance programs

• Drivers rewarded for perfect attendance

• Drivers rewarded for avoiding preventable accidents

• Computerization of routing/scheduling, fleet maintenance

• Standardization of equipment

• Staff input encouraged

Greatness is an attitude
There are thousands of ways to improve your transportation program. Some are feasible; some aren’t. One tactic that doesn’t require school board approval is improving your attitude. Adopt a positive, upbeat outlook and encourage all employees to do the same. Any good fleet is more than the sum of its parts. They have a positive energy that’s hard to miss. That’s because it is powered by people with the desire to do their jobs a little better today than yesterday. These people share their optimism and enthusiasm with others. They believe in duty and obligation. They refuse to take short cuts. They are the core of a competent, diligent school bus fleet, perhaps even a Great Fleet.