Transportation Management Software, bus scheduling software, school bus scheduling software, school bus management software
It's 4:00 PM. Do you know where all your student riders are?
Student safety is always important when managing a school transportation system - but it seems like it's extra important these days. With far too much violence occurring in and around schools, a district needs to take every possible precaution to protect their student riders. Student tracking apps can help make that happen.
Student tracking apps, in combination with a physical tracking system such as scannable student ID cards, allow you to see where your students are within the transportation system. They also add a lot of data-tracking and reporting features, so student tracking can potentially even help your district's funding!
Four Reasons To Invest In Student Tracking Technology
1 - Always know exactly who's on your buses
When students are scanning their ID cards whenever they get on and off the bus, there's no question about whether they got on the bus or not. If you ever need to get ahold of a particular student, or there's simply a question about where they are, the matter is easily settled.
This can be particularly helpful in situations such as a child with divorced parents sharing custody, where the child may be taking different buses on different days. You don't have to manually keep track of their unique schedules - the system does it for you.
2 - Prevent mistakes
Bus systems can be confusing, especially for younger students. Mistakes happen, and sometimes students get on the wrong bus, or perhaps accidentally get off at the wrong stop. This can lead to major issues - unless a quick scan of their student ID will instantly alert the bus driver to the problem. This reduces the chances of losing track of a student who gets on or off at the wrong place.
The last thing you want is a "lost child" panic, just because a student fell asleep in the back of the bus. Proper tracking makes that far less likely to happen. Or, if there is a genuine student safety issue such as a lost child, student tracking can at least help narrow down where they went.
3 - Quickly answer parent questions
One unavoidable chore in a transportation office is dealing with phone calls from parents wanting to know where their child is. If you're tracking student ridership closely, these phone calls can be fielded quickly and with a minimum amount of disruption to your work.
In fact, when combined with a parental notification app, you might not even need to answer the phone. An app can allow parents to self-serve information about their student's status, based on data collected on the bus.
4 - Improve your state reporting
Most states offer rebates and benefits to schools, to help fund their transportation system. However, these funds require significant data collection and reporting to be accessed. You need to submit detailed reports on student ridership to fully qualify for benefits.
If you're already collecting detailed per-student data on ridership, with software that can produce relevant reports, state reporting suddenly becomes far easier. In some cases, the software could even pay for itself by improving your state funding requests.
BusBoss Keeps Your Fleet Running Smoothly
BusBoss is the premiere software suite for managing and maintaining a school transportation system! With features including easy route mapping, robust data collection, online companion apps, and simple data migration, BusBoss has everything you need to streamline and optimize your bus system.
Contact us to learn more about how BusBoss makes your bus system better!
(484) 941-0820
