ALEXANDRIA, Va. — The National School Transportation Association (NSTA) and Zonar Systems are jointly sponsoring a grant competition for eligible school bus contractors to receive $50,000 worth of equipment and hardware from Zonar for their fleet.

This grant will provide one bus company that serves a school system with the following technology from Zonar: Electronic Vehicle Inspection Report, GPS, real-time engine diagnostic reporting and Ground Traffic Control web-based software.

To be considered for the award, the contractor must be a current NSTA member at the time the application is submitted. Applications will be considered that include matching funds to expand the program beyond the limit of the grant. 

Moreover, applicants must document their ability to pay for the ongoing monthly service fee that includes all costs for the cellular transmission of the real-time data, hosting of all inspection and GPS data, unlimited access to the web-based application Ground Traffic Control for accessing GPS and inspection reports, and 24/7 telephone and online support.

Applications are due Dec. 29. For more information on the grant and the application process, go here.

The winner will be announced at NSTA's Mid-Winter Meeting, which will be held Jan. 21-25, 2012, in Maui, Hawaii.