Many school districts are finding help to prevent the spread of COVID-19 onboard their own buses.
GPS technology that tracks routes and students who get on and off is now being amplified to also track possible exposure times and hygiene verification.
The 'Bus Guardian' feature was recently added as an option for districts who use Cal/Amp technology. The company said the feature can help schools answer vital questions that will assist in stopping the spread of coronavirus.
"How do we know which kids are getting on which buses if a student were to become ill? What do we do? How do we know that? How do we make sure the buses are being sanitized properly? So, all that technology we already had. We just reapplied it for the current pandemic," said Brad Bishop of 'Bus Guardian' and Cal/Amp.
Bishop said CalAmp reapplied the technology it already had to the pandemic to add features such as tracking exposure times and providing drivers with a tablet to keep track of a checklist to sanitize buses.
Multiple districts in the region use CalAmp technology already and several Brightbill Transportation buses are equipped with it in Lebanon County for districts such as ELCO.
However, ELCO does not yet use the 'Bus Guardian' feature.
"Originally we purchased that technology one as a GPS module for our buses to track where the buses are in their route and to answer parent and community questions about our buses with very precise information," said ELCO business manager Michael Miller.
Miller added, the district also purchased a student tracing module with the GPS technology that requires students to use a badge.
"Students swipe their badges before when they come on the bus and in doing so it takes a timestamp. Then, when they leave, they swipe and that's another time stamp so we can track when students came on the bus and off the bus from an administrative and a management point of view those are two important pieces of data if you're following up on a student or a parent inquiry," said Miller. Miller added the student tracing module would also be useful in providing health officials with detailed information if necessary for contact tracing in the future. However, the district has not and does not at this time plan to use for those purposes.
For 2020, ELCO is also implementing seating charts based on when students get on the bus to minimize contact.
When FOX43 asked Miller if he believes the Cal/Amp technology is accurate, efficient, and affordable for school districts, he noted that he cannot speak for the financial situations of other districts. However, ELCO budgets for the technology.
"We have had this technology for 6 years it is efficient and it is accurate based on user entry which means students swiping their cards when they enter the bus. It is very easy to use," said Miller, who said children from K-12 are trained on how the badge process works.
Pequea Valley superintendent Erik Orndorff confirmed that Pequea Valley also does not use the 'Bus Guardian' technology on its buses. But, Orndorff's office told FOX43 school bus technology is beneficial because, "if used correctly, tells us exactly who is on our buses."