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School Bus Fleet Blogby Thomas McMahonOctober 17, 2011

Does bus seat height affect behavior management?

Two years ago, a federal rule went into effect that raised the minimum height of seat backs on new school buses from 20 inches to 24 inches. The goal was to help prevent taller and heavier children from being thrown over the seat in a crash. But can the taller seats have an unintended impact on another aspect of bus safety?

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School Bus Fleet Blogby Kelly RoherSeptember 16, 2011

Target bus stop dangers

This summer, I heard the harrowing story of Jaycee Dugard’s life for nearly two decades after she was abducted from a school bus stop in South Lake Tahoe, Calif., in 1991 by convicted sex offender Phillip Garrido and held captive in the backyard of his home. This got me thinking about what school districts can do to maximize student safety at bus stops.

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School Bus Fleet Blogby Thomas McMahonAugust 19, 2011

Getting to know my driver

I usually sat near the back when I rode Diane's bus in high school, and I never really got to know her over those few years. But now here we were, nearly a decade and a half later, both in jobs that led us to this same pupil transportation conference in a faraway state. ...

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School Bus Fleet Blogby Thomas McMahonAugust 12, 2011

Could school bus ads end up being costly?

On the timely topic of advertising on school buses, one concern is the potential for trouble in controlling the ad content. The fear of legal ramifications seems to be supported by a court case involving a transit agency that refused to run bus ads aimed at convicted felons.

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School Bus Fleet Blogby Kelly RoherAugust 5, 2011

What do you do in your free time?

Devoting time to your interests outside of your job is important. At the very least, it can help you return to your job with newfound focus. This is the case for John Clements of Kings Canyon Unified School District in Reedley, Calif., who enjoys kayaking in his free time. After learning this, I'm interested ...

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School Bus Fleet Blogby Kelly RoherJuly 15, 2011

How did you start your pupil transportation career?

Many of the people whom I and my fellow editors have met and spoken with during our time with SBF have worked in the pupil transportation industry for many years — some for two- or three-plus decades. A lot of those individuals started their careers as school bus drivers and worked their way up to their current position. I'm interested to learn how you got your start in the industry, and also ...

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School Bus Fleet Blogby Thomas McMahonJune 27, 2011

Not just transportation

School buses in the U.S. safely shuttle some 24 million kids to and from school each day, but are the big, yellow vessels contributing to the education process in other ways? Lately, I’ve been seeing a slew of examples that show ...

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School Bus Fleet Blogby Kelly RoherJune 10, 2011

Bus company assists in training of service dogs

In my experience, pupil transporters are compassionate, caring people who are dedicated to doing their jobs well. For many, this compassion and dedication extends to the communities they serve, as exemplified by the staff at Franklin, Mass.-based Vendetti Buses/Vendetti Motors. When a volunteer for the ...

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School Bus Fleet Blogby Thomas McMahonMay 20, 2011

Seeing the driver’s view

Ride-alongs can be a great way for local officials and others to get a better understanding of school transportation systems. ...

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School Bus Fleet Blogby Kelly RoherMay 9, 2011

Memorable moments on the job

I think it’s safe to say that most people have an experience while doing their job that’s especially memorable, or a time when they realized the effect they were having on other people’s lives as a result of their work. One experience that sticks out for me in my years working for SBF is when ...

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School Bus Fleet Blogby Kelly RoherApril 15, 2011

Operations take action to cut costs

It’s no secret that pupil transportation operations around the nation are contending with budget cuts due to the challenging economic climate. In the last few months, we’ve learned about a variety of efforts that school districts and transportation departments have implemented to alleviate the strain of this circumstance by cutting costs.

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School Bus Fleet Blogby Thomas McMahonApril 12, 2011

School bus security in Israel

While our industry trains and prepares for the possibility of a security threat, we can also reflect on how fortunate we in the U.S. are to not be subjected to the perpetual hazards that people in some other areas of the world live with. This came to mind upon learning of a school bus in Israel being struck by an anti-tank missile on Thursday.

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