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Thomas McMahon

Executive Editor

Thomas had covered the pupil transportation industry with School Bus Fleet since 2002. When he's not writing articles about yellow buses, he enjoys running long distances and making a joyful noise with his guitar.

Newsby Thomas McMahonMarch 11, 2014

After 10 years at NTSB, Chairman Hersman to step down

Deborah Hersman, who has served on the National Transportation Safety Board since 2004, will leave in April to become president and CEO of the National Safety Council. Mike Martin, executive director of the National Association for Pupil Transportation, says that Hersman "has been and will surely continue to be a very effective advocate for continuous improvement in school transportation."

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How kids react to a school bus crash

After a car crashed into his bus, John Horton noted some interesting reactions from his young passengers. For example, a second-grader asked, “Why was there no explosion?” The next morning, as Horton and his passengers were approaching the intersection where the accident occurred …

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Newsby Thomas McMahonMarch 5, 2014

District may switch to 3 tiers, shorten walking distances

In an effort to prevent late buses and enhance transportation service, Minnesota’s South Washington County Schools is proposing to change from a four-tier bell time schedule to three tiers. Another change under consideration would be to reduce walking distances from 1.5 miles to 1 mile for middle school students and from 2 to 1.5 miles for high school students.

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Newsby Thomas McMahonMarch 4, 2014

Bill aims to help deal with school bus funding losses

The Indiana legislation would allow school corporations that have lost at least 10% of their transportation fund levies due to circuit breaker credits (property tax caps) to use money from other funds to pay for transportation through 2016. The bill unanimously passes the state Senate.

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Newsby Thomas McMahonFebruary 27, 2014

Wyoming bill would require stop-arm cameras

Under the legislation, as of the 2016-17 school year, all school buses in the state would have to be equipped with external cameras to capture evidence of illegal school bus passing. Internal school bus surveillance cameras would remain optional.

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Newsby Thomas McMahonFebruary 26, 2014

Average diesel price back up over $4 per gallon

The average on-highway price for diesel in the U.S. rises to $4.017, according to new federal data. It is the first time since March 2013 that the national average has been above $4 per gallon.

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Newsby Thomas McMahonFebruary 24, 2014

School district to bring back busing as pilot program

After a 9-year-old girl was fatally struck by a pickup truck while walking home in December, parents petitioned the Etiwanda (Calif.) School District to bring back school bus service. The school board decides to implement a pilot transportation program for students who live at least 3 miles from school.

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Newsby Thomas McMahonFebruary 21, 2014

Texas district to equip buses with stop-arm cameras

The Georgetown Independent School District and the Georgetown Police Department partner with road safety camera provider American Traffic Solutions to crack down on illegal passing of school buses. A statewide survey in Texas last year found 9,825 instances of stop-arm running in one day.

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Newsby Thomas McMahonFebruary 21, 2014

Navistar expects $22M annual savings in engine production move

The IC Bus parent company will move mid-range engine production at its Huntsville, Ala., plant to Melrose Park, Ill. Chief Operating Officer Jack Allen says that Navistar has “too much excess engine manufacturing capacity in North America, and we must take action to reduce our costs and improve the business.”

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School Bus Fleet Blogby Thomas McMahonFebruary 20, 2014

Kids know good drivers

Do kids know what it takes to be a school bus driver? Surely most children aren’t aware of all the specific requirements: the training, the background checks, the testing, etc. But they do seem to understand that being a school bus driver is a tough job that …

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