District revamps emergency procedures for special-needs students

Among the changes at Florida’s Hillsborough County Public Schools transportation department is the requirement for bus drivers to call 911 first when there’s a medical emergency, and bus drivers also receive more training in handling students with disabilities as well as undergo a new debriefing process when a medically fragile student has an issue. The changes are in response to the deaths of two special-needs students in 2012.

U.S. DOT unveils distracted driving campaign

The effort is the Department of Transportation's first-ever national advertising campaign and law enforcement crackdown to combat distracted driving. Ads using the phrase “U Drive. U Text. U Pay.” will run from April 7 to 15, which coincides with a nationwide law enforcement crackdown in states with distracted driving bans.

Houston district wins award for ‘School Bus Shuffle’ video

Houston Independent School District’s transportation department receives a Bronze Telly from the Telly Awards for its educational safety video “School Bus Shuffle.” The awards honor outstanding local, regional and cable TV commercials and programs, the best video and film productions, and online commercials, videos and films.

PHOTOS: Florida District's Vehicle Maintenance Parts Department

Is a shared transportation director good for your operation?

Many factors must be taken into account when considering whether to have one director oversee yellow bus service at two school districts, including the operations’ proximity to one another, the condition of the fleets and the relations among department employees. Patience and support for the shared director are essential to long-term success.

Student transportation authority expected to save districts $2.5M

Edmonton (Alberta) Public Schools and Edmonton Catholic Schools will work together over the next two years to create the Edmonton Student Transportation Authority, a separate legal entity that will deliver joint transportation services for both school districts. Officials from the districts say that in addition to the annual cost savings, it will improve efficiency and reduce ride times.

DOE: School bus plan could save $500K by end of year

A Hawaii Department of Education official says that the anticipated savings from Oahu’s school bus reform initiative, which is part of a statewide plan to overhaul the transportation program, is $100,000 more than what officials originally expected by the end of the 2013-14 school year. Meanwhile, the department is expanding service in the pilot area, which includes about 30 schools, while decreasing the number of buses in the fleet.

Former director pleads guilty to records tampering

Douglas Wessling will reportedly receive two years of probation and an order to pay a $1,000 fine for the crime, which is an aggravated misdemeanor. In the fall, he resigned as transportation director from Iowa's Galva-Holstein Community School District after state inspectors found that buses in the fleet that had issues had not been repaired, despite Wessling notifying the state otherwise.

NTSB investigating crashes involving tire failure

In one of the crashes, an SUV’s tire tread separated, and the vehicle collided with a school bus carrying a high school baseball team. The National Transportation Safety Board is also investigating a crash of a church van in which the tire that failed was part of a product recall.

School bus driver strike averted in Seattle

Teamsters Local 174, which represents more than 450 school bus drivers in Seattle, had said it was prepared to strike since mid-February. On Saturday, the union ratifies a new contract with First Student.