Customer
Benton Community School District
Challenge
When a school bus accident happened, Benton School District struggled to find the bus and identify the students, delaying emergency responses and updates to authorities and parents. Realizing the need for improvement, the district aimed to install a system with GPS tracking and student ridership monitoring for faster responses and better communication during accidents, leading to enhanced fleet management.
Solution
With Crosswalk K-12, we instantly confirmed each student’s presence on the bus during the incident, allowing us to proactively contact parents before even leaving the office.
Results
The district can now quickly locate a bus, know exactly which students are on the bus, and has improved response times, resulting in a significant increase in student safety and peace of mind.
Product
Premier’s ConnectED Bus Crosswalk K-12 fleet management solution is a turn-key school bus fleet management solution complete with routing software, GPS tracking student ridership monitoring, pre-and post-trip inspections, turn-by-turn directions, and comprehensive reporting and increasing school bus safety and overall transportation department efficiency.
Enhanced Safety, Streamlined Communication, & Operational Excellence with Advanced Student Tracking and GPS Solution
ConnectED Bus Crosswalk K-12 · Benton Community School DistrictBenton Community School District in Iowa faced challenges in knowing the exact location of any specific bus and exactly which students were riding the bus at any given time. The situation reached a crisis point following a severe bus accident. The accident revealed significant gaps in the district’s ability to identify and communicate with law enforcement and parents quickly and accurately. This lack of clarity made responding more difficult and complicated the insurance claim process as well.
Finding the Right Solution
Benton Community School District researched many potential fleet management solutions to address their challenges and ultimately selected Premier’s ConnectED Bus Crosswalk K-12 solution. This choice was influenced by the solution’s robust capabilities, personalized service, on-site training, and ongoing support specially adapted to meet the district’s unique needs across its 333-mile rural expanse.
Seeing the Results
The efficacy of Crosswalk K-12 was put to the test during another bus incident. Its real-time GPS functionality enabled the district to locate the bus and immediately identify the students on board.
Transportation Director Tim Lyons emphasized the system’s effectiveness: “With Crosswalk K-12, we instantly confirmed each student’s presence on the bus during the incident, allowing us to proactively contact parents before even leaving the office.”
The capability streamlined the district’s response and enabled prompt accountability for all students, significantly increasing trust and peace of mind among parents and school officials
"With Crosswalk K-12, we instantly confirmed each student’s presence on the bus during the incident, allowing us to proactively contact parents before even leaving the office."
-Tim Lyons, Transportation Director
Crosswalk K-12 has also reduced the need for paperwork, leading to substantial time and cost savings and operational efficiency. “Drivers used to use a daily paper inspection form that took an hour to complete and they complained about it. We’ve gotten rid of that. Now we use the digital form on the Crosswalk K-12 tablet. It cuts down on time and paperwork and all the drivers love it,” said Lyons. Additional benefits include accurate driver time recording and streamlined reporting for auditing purposes.
The user-friendly and efficient routing platform has further eased drivers’ workloads. Drivers have reported increased job satisfaction due to reduced paperwork and fewer radio interruptions, attributing this to the comprehensive features of the Crosswalk K-12 solution.
Looking to the Future
Looking ahead, Benton Community School District plans to implement Crosswalk’s parent app, allowing parents to track their children’s buses in real time. This update will further strengthen community trust and decrease direct inquiries. Additionally, it will amplify the transformative impact of Crosswalk K-12, solidifying its role as a critical tool for enhancing school safety and operational efficiency.
Crosswalk K-12
Managing your school district's transportation department can be both challenging and time consuming. ConnectED Bus Crosswalk provides the tools to increase safety, reduce expenses and improve response times with:
- GPS & Student Ridership
- Routing
- Pre & Post Trip Inspections
- Field Trip Management
- Turn-by-Turn Directions
- Health & Sanitation Management
- Parent & Student App
- School Information System (SIS) Integration
