Pilot Program Aims to Increase Student Safety

Students sleeping through their bus stops or taking another bus to go over to a friend’s house are common occurrences in school transportation. Unfortunately, parents are sometimes the last to know, which can lead to worry about their students’ whereabouts.

 

This semester, Stevenson High School is partnering with its school transportation provider, First Student, in a pilot program that will allow the bus company and the District to track students from their departure from school to their final destination. Called the Z-Pass system, students will have their ID card scanned as they enter and exit the bus. Eventually, parents will be able to track the information online. The goal is to provide better security for Stevenson families, smarter bus route scheduling, and to save taxpayers’ money.

 

The pilot program will be rolled out slowly over the spring semester, with five to 10 of the District’s 57 bus runs participating in the program. The first bus will begin using the Z-Pass system on January 26. Students participating in the program will receive new IDs, and no student will be denied entry to a bus because he or she forgot their ID.

 

In the near future, the Z-Pass system will be rolling out a parent portal, where parents can access information about where and when students reach their final destinations.  In fact, Z-Pass will be creating an app for iPhones.

 

The ability to track ridership will also allow the District and the other members of its busing consortium to better schedule bus runs. Stevenson and Districts 96 and 102 all share buses and bus runs. Having better numbers on ridership will allow the bus company to better monitor bus routes and provide more efficient service to all students and families. At some point in the future, the on-board GPS system will be able to modify bus routes based upon ridership, so students can arrive at their final destination faster.

For more information, contact Steve Tucker at 847-415-4062 or Mark Michelini at 847-415-4119.