A new student tracking system and cameras are being installed on Santa Maria Joint Union High School District’s entire school bus fleet this year.
The $200,000 monitoring system, called vMax Trac, will track students electronically—with an RFID reader (radio frequency identification)—when they swipe their ID cards as they get on and off the district’s 31 buses.
The cameras and readers have already been installed inside about half of the fleet. Each bus will have five cameras—one above the driver’s head aimed at the entry door, two monitoring the center aisle from each end of the bus, and another “dashboard” camera facing forward through the windshield. The video has a time stamp. There is also GPS that tracks the bus movement and can be viewed on a computer screen at the district office.
The technology allows the district to monitor student behavior, send help, or respond quickly if something goes wrong, like an accident. It also makes mandated state reporting easier, aids in evaluating transportation needs, usage at stops, and other logistics, according to district Transportation Manager Jerry Sitton.
This article appears in Sep 10-17, 2015.
