CLEVELAND —The School Bus Safety Co. (SBSC) reported Tuesday that six of the eight largest school bus contractors in the nation are now using the Driver Training Course.

The announcement came as the company received an order from Illinois Central School Bus for 64 copies of the course, which focuses on improving driver behaviors and reducing accidents.

“School bus contracting is very competitive, and private operators understand that dollars saved on accidents go straight to the bottom line,” SBSC President Jeff Cassell said. “Contractors must provide a high level of service to their customers, and they quickly appreciated that the Driver Training Course will enable them to do this.”

Student Transportation Inc. adopted the program at all of its locations more than a year ago.

“Nothing like this has ever been available before, and we have no doubt that this course will help us train our drivers to be even safer,” said Denis Gallagher, chairman and CEO of Student Transportation Inc.

Petermann Ltd. has also been using the course for more than a year.

“This is the best training available for our drivers,” Safety Director Keith Harms said. “We all know that the driver holds the key to the safety of the kids, and only by providing the best training can you meet the goal of keeping the kids safe.”

At Illinois Central School Bus, Director of Safety and Training Frank Ciccarella said that the Driver Training Course “will be the foundation upon which we build our System Safety and Security Program. … I have no hesitation in recommending its use to every school bus operation.”

SBSC noted that more than 550 school districts operating their own fleets also use the Driver Training Course, including 31 of the 100 largest fleets.

For more information on the program, go to schoolbussafetyco.com.