New technology to track school buses

By Carolyn Marnon – The Wayne-Westland Community School District transportation department has been rolling along with several updates involving their school buses this year.
Here Comes the Bus is a new app being used by the transportation department. The app uses global positioning system (GPS) technology to track the district’s school buses.
According to WWCSD Communications Director Jenny Johnson, the school district “has partnered with Here Comes the Bus to offer families an app that will help avoid students and parents from waiting too long for the bus. Here Comes the Bus allows parents to see where their child’s bus is along the route and when it will be at their bus stop.”
The app can be downloaded to an iPhone or Android device. Parents/guardians can then see real-time map locations of their student’s bus, get push-notifications when the bus gets close by and helps everyone get to the bus stop at the right time.
Jenny says the school district was offered the opportunity to be a pilot district for Here Comes the Bus last year at no cost to the district. The district chose to continue with the app this year.
On another note, transportation Director Rhonda Lyons, CTD, was able to secure a grant from Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy that provided funding for 25% of new buses. “We were able to purchase five buses for the price of four,” said Jenny Johnson. Three of the buses are general education buses and two are special education buses. The new buses use either clean diesel or propane technology which can reduce exposure to exhaust fumes while riding the bus.