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Student Transport Scheduling Systems - Friend or foe?
School boards across Canada are under increasing pressure to reduce
the cost of transporting students. Today, there are several software products on the market that claim to achieve significant
cash savings by making the the planning and scheduling of school buses more efficient.
Nothing comes easy
(or free) of course - and achieving real reductions in expenditure on student transportation raises a series of challenges
that go far beyond the capabilities of a pure software solution. Based upon our experience in both Canada and
the UK, some of those challenges are: Understanding what it is that really drives the
cost of student transportation in your district. For example, how much of your expenditure relates to services that you have
no statutory duty to provide?
Is the School Board prepared to change its transportation
policy to reduce the cost of the service?
Have
you looked at how much can be saved by staggering the times at which schools open and close each day, so
that you can reduce the number of buses you need to use?
Is there a willingness within the School Board to face
the criticism that will inevitably result from a decision that takes away transport from students who can currently
access it?
Are you prepared for the media campaign that it brings?
Are you actually procuring your transportation services in the
most efficient way - or just the way you've always done it?
Is it really economic to run your
own fleet of school buses, when so many of them sit idle for most of the day?
Have you talked to your local
transit provider to see whether they can tailor their services to transport some or all of your students at a lower
cost?
Once you've addressed these questions, that's the
time to review whether your scheduling efficiency could be improved. Every software provider will claim to be able to
deliver big savings for you, but choosing the right package is not always straightforward.
Above all, remember
one thing - the scheduling package will only work for you if you are prepared to invest time and resource
in making sure that your data is accurate - and that you have clearly defined the parameters within which the system will
have to work.
Remember that many student transportation scheduling packages have been developed from
other applications - either from the world of freight distrubution (parcels don't complain if they're
on the truck too long), from taxi dispatch systems (every passenger expects to travel door-to-door), transit scheduling systems
(where buses run all day long along a fixed route) or other non-transport applications.
Whatever the provider
says, Student transportation brings challenges that are different - and often unique - in the transport logistics industry.
Whichever scheduling system you choose must be capable of adapting to your needs, and you will only achieve
a satisfactory outcome by applying your local knowledge to every stage of the process.
Finally,
don't simply assume that the schedules output from your scheduling system are perfect. Sure, they will
be the most efficient schedules that the system's alogorithms can produce based upon the data you provided and the constraints
that you defined. But they do need to be tested before they go live - and if the solution they offer differs from your existing
practice, then you need to verify that the solution really is deliverable.
That means being prepared to devote
staff time - your staff, and your transport providers' staff - to ensuring that your data
is accurate and up-to-date, the asssumptions on which the scheduling package works are valid for your service
and the new schedules in your hand will really work on the ground.
And remember, if you're using a new
scheduling system for the first time, think carefully about when you implement them. It might seem logical
to introduce new systems ready for the September start, but that's possibly the worst time of the year to do so, with
so many possible unknowns and last-minute changes to manage at the same time. Try to implement your new schedules at
a time of year when the demand for transport is predictable and stable. Bear in mind, also, that it's so much easier to
communicate information about upcoming transport changes to students and parents when your students are in school and
not sitting on the beach!
Who supplies route planning and scheduling software?
Software for student transport scheduling is available from
various suppliers, including:
Bustops by MicroAnalytics
Co.
1971 Queen Street East #103, Toronto, Ontario M4L1H9
Phone: 416-691-1222
Fax: 416-691-3541
http://www.bestroutes.com/busstops.html
Bus Boss by Orbit Software, Inc
2081 E. High Street, Suite #2, Pottstown,
PA 19464
Phone: 484-941-0820 Toll-Free: 866-740-8994 Fax: 484-941-0825
http://www.orbitsoftware.net/products.aspEdulog School Bus Routing Software by Education Logistics,
Inc 3000 Palmer Street, Missoula, MT 59808 Telephone: (406) 728-0893
Fax: (406) 728-8754
http://www.edulog.com/company/Lynx Transportation Software by Rite Byte, Inc.
S4125A Rocky Point Road,
Baraboo, WI 53913 Phone: (608) 356-6822 Fax: (608) 356-0312
http://www.rytebyteinc.com/lynx-transportation-software.htm
Trapeze Transportation Management Solutions by Trapeze Software Inc
School
Product Enquiries: USA (888) 595 4696 or (216) 539 1810 Canada (905) 629 8727
http://www.trapezegroup.com
Versatrans by Tyler Technologies, Inc
5949 Sherry Lane, Suite 1400, Dallas, TX 75225
Telephone 972-713-3700
http://www.tylertech.com/Solutions-Products/Versatrans-Product-Suite |
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A salutory lesson for one school board.....
Cowichan Valley Citizen : Friday, October 08, 2010It took 15 minutes of procedural wrangling but finally the Cowichan Valley Board of Education
allowed a delegation of school bus drivers to speak at its Oct. 6 regular meeting. Wendy Mitchell,
who's got 28 years of experience as a driver in the district under her belt, did the talking but she was accompanied by
a group of other drivers who offered silent support. There's
been quite a bit of ballyhoo from the board about changes made to busing this year but precious little consultation with drivers,
so there's been a lot of problems, mostly caused by the Versatrans computer program now in use, she said. Mitchell said she'd been dismayed in the spring to hear the district's transportation budget would
be cut by 20 per cent but trusted it would work out because she had been sure she'd heard the district promise that every
child who rode a bus last year would have a seat this year. "September startup was without
a doubt one of the most difficult times of my driving career," she said. Mitchell
has survived four major system overhauls but this has been the toughest, with a lot of the problem-solving dumped onto drivers'
laps. "Our first look at the new system was during our three days of in-service prior to
the September opening. Routes were handed out and were to be test-run once by the driving staff. "One
look at my route sheet and I knew we had problems. Directions were either inadequate or completely wrong," she said.
And that was just for starters. The program had chosen bus stops
based on registrations with no concern for the actual road conditions. What happened? "Blind corners, no parking for parents waiting for students, no shoulders to stand on," she said.
Questions led to the news that drivers were expected to surmount these problems using their
judgment because they knew the areas best. "Although I appreciated that they were confident
in our abilities, I find it very unsettling that a process that was so important in the past
of having stops checked for safety was being thrown to the wind." In the time since that first run-through, change has
not flowed smoothly and as she herself has been working outside the department very recently, Mitchell has concerns. "I
only hope the casual drivers were using the hand-written updates I left for them." But stops and routes are not the only problem. Another major headache, and one that has seen bus drivers yelled at
by angry parents, is the delay in getting overload buses to pick up students in a timely manner. "I asked the office
repeatedly about solving the issue and was told it all takes time. Overloads at startup were not new but they never took this
long to be dealt with in past years." Finally, after two weeks, overload buses were directed to follow directly behind
her, eliminating the waits, she said. The timing on the routes is also askew and although this is finally being addressed,
"a lot of frustration, anger, worry and concern would have been avoided" by handling the situation differently and,
most importantly, testing the changes beforehand.
In addition to the problems drivers are encountering with their own
schedules, they are fighting ever-increasing traffic as parents who now have to drive their children jam the parking lots
before and after school, according to Mitchell.
For drivers there has been one light at the end of the tunnel, however.
A supervisor has been placed in the busing department to work with routes and drivers. "I have confidence this will be
a positive step for all with our combined knowledge and experience working together," Mitchell said. And there are plenty
of problems to work on. Reading the route instructions alone is difficult, but there is also the situation of buses driving
empty for long periods while others are too full, too many stops in some areas and not enough in others and the continuing
problem of inaccurate route times. Mitchell said the district purchased the computer
program, "for what I assume is a hefty price tag," and has since spent countless dollars on the employee hours it
has taken to implement it and deal with all the complaints. "The cost can't be cheap. I am convinced the cost of
this startup must come comparably close to any savings the board expects to claim this budget year," she said, suggesting
the money could have been better spent transporting students while preparing a system that would actually work. Mitchell,
on behalf of the drivers, asked for release of the cost of implementing the Versatrans program, including its initial purchase.
She also wants to hear how the new system will affect driver jobs and student ridership in the future. The trustees heard
the presentation and then referred it to their transportation safety committee without further comment.
Cowichan Valley Citizen : Monday, September 20, 2010Frustration was the name of the game for a group of Cowichan Valley school trustees and parents Sept. 15 as they
called for rides for students now stranded by a change in busing practices. District Secretary-Treasurer Bob Harper
was point man for the discussion, which he said had three main parts. The problem: the district needed to cut $325,000 from
the transportation budget. The question: how to do it with the least disruption to students?
The solution:
enforce walk limits and stop guaranteeing bus rides to "courtesy riders" - students who are traveling away from
their "home" schools. This year has seen a major revamp of the district's busing, and the removal of five or
six buses from the system, Harper told the meeting Wednesday. In previous years, the busing schedule was almost hand-written
to try to accommodate every student but that is simply not feasible anymore and a piece of software that's been around
the district for a couple of years was employed this summer to help with the job, he said. However, there have been some adjustments to deal with special situations. Because the catchment area for French
Immersion programs is the entire district, students can be bused to French Immersion from wherever they are. Also, in
recognition that the difference in the way courses are delivered at Frances Kelsey and Cowichan Secondary Schools affects
some students' ability to succeed, a shuttle bus runs back and forth between those two schools, Harper said. The
problem for some trustees and also for parents in the crowd was that many people thought the district had guaranteed last
spring that those who had a ride in the 2009/10 school year would be accommodated in 2010/11. Not so, Harper said. Trustee
Eden Haythornthwaite said she remembers if differently. "This is more draconian," she said. Harper reminded her
that the budget reduction has meant cuts. Courtesy rides are offered where feasible but no additional buses are being put
on especially for that increased volume, even if that has been the practice in the past, he said. "We've cut five or six buses. There is an impact. We recognize that and we are trying to accommodate
people. It's a tremendous job to rebuild an entire bus schedule." Trustee Deb Foster asked what is happening to the
district's team of bus drivers and Harper replied that eventually some jobs will be cut. However, in reply to a question
from Trustee Julie Thomas, he said the district would not be selling off the surplus buses right away. "We will keep
some as spares. I don't want to sell off a bus only to have to turn right around and buy it back," he said.
Cowichan Valley Citizen : September
10, 2010Seeing elementary-aged children left by the side of a
busy road had a Youbou father seeing red Thursday. Matthew Howes said that he
and his family had been left high and dry by an unannounced change in the school bus schedule. While the family lives in Youbou, his daughter attends Palsson Elementary School in Lake Cowichan. "I guess
the change must have started on the first day because two days in a row my kid's missed the bus by 20 minutes," he
said. "My pickup time out here in the book says '10514 Youbou Road: 7:29 a.m.'
Well, this morning, the bus drove by at 7:10 a.m. Yesterday, the bus drove by at 7:10. My wife had to drive four kids in to
school because that was all she could fit in her van. They're leaving elementary kids by the side of the road. Luckily,
my Kindergarten daughter hasn't gone to school yet. She starts next week." Howes
said he phoned the school district's transportation department Thursday morning and discovered that his daughter's
pickup time was supposed to be 7:12. A call to Palsson School showed that the
secretary there didn't know there had been a change. "She said, 'your
pickup time is 7:29.' I told her it had been changed." The angry parent
said he was "pretty irate" when he called the transportation department in Duncan. A logging truck driver, he had to take a day off work to deal with the problem. "I
had to drive my kids to school and my neighbour's kids as well. They are in high school and they had no clue. Apparently
everybody was supposed to be notified but the schools don't even know that the bus schedule has been changed. That I thought
was a little crazy." Even the school district was giving him mixed messages,
Howes said. "The woman at the transportation department told me the schools knew
of a new bus schedule and the kids were informed but then she told me she got a phone call from Lake Cowichan Secondary inquiring
the same thing: why were kids not showing up? It was because they'd missed the bus." There is real cause for concern because some parents have a work schedule that means they must drop off their children
at the bus stop before heading out to get to work on time, he said. "There will
be Kindergartens to Grade 5s standing on busy Youbou Road. It is a narrow road and right now we have heavy logging going on.
What's the kid supposed to do? She missed the bus. Is the kid supposed to hang around the front door like a dog waiting
for mommy and daddy to come home?" The transportation department assured
him they would send out a fax to the school today with the new schedule but that didn't reassure the anxious dad. "Sending out a new schedule now is bloody nice but what are you going to do with the kids that
are standing on the road waiting? Are they going to send another bus out to get them? There are bears around: I've got
a bear thoroughfare at my place. It's crazy that my Grade 3 is supposed to be standing out there at 7:12 all by herself.
Then my Kindergarten daughter is going to be catching the bus as well. I'm not letting my five-year-old stand out there,"
he said.
While he was driving his vanload of children to school, he noticed
others had also been left behind. "Oh yeah, there had to be about 15 kids
out there. I only have a seven-passenger minivan. I can only take so many kids with seatbelts." He's luckier than some because his daughter doesn't have to walk too far to the bus stop so he grasped the
situation quickly. Heading out with his daughter to the bus stop Thursday, they thought they heard a bus go by early, he said.
It turned out to be true. "You know kids
with their texting nowadays? My daughter texted her friend and she said: 'I'm on the bus. I'm almost at school.'
It was 7:20 when we found this out. I was beside myself."
An
update about busing placed on the school district website Sept. 7 listed changes for several routes but none included Cowichan
Lake area schools. The school district's bus route booklet, published last month
and circulated widely, shows the bus is to start its run to Lake Cowichan at A.B. Greenwell at Yount Elementary School at
7:26 a.m. and wend its way to Palsson Elementary by 8:13 a.m. No earlier times are
mentioned. Bob Harper, secretary-treasurer for the Cowichan Valley School District,
informed about the complaint Thursday morning, said he was unaware of the situation but took notes and said he would investigate
what was happening in Youbou. Until this year, children from the north side of Cowichan
Lake normally ended up attending school at Palsson, while those from the south side went to A.B. Greenwell. Now, as A.B. Greenwell
has had to take up temporary quarters at the old Yount School in Youbou, new students registering from the north side are
being encouraged to attend the school in their community but those families who were already in Palsson are continuing there.
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