School Transportation - 2014

khaleej times / ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT

Buckle up for a safer journey Parents can rest easy as children commute in secure and comfortable transportation

Due to the changing trends in commuting and road safety, buses have improved its interiors to accommodate a comfortable journey.

Seatbelts, working air-conditioners and of course, using the stop sign (present on the side of the bus) have each gained importance

Farhana Chowdhury

T

ransportation in the UAE is smooth, convenient, comfortable, and easily accessible — a boon for students whose daily routine involves commuting between home and place of study.

Not many use public transport to go to schools and universities.

Instead many parents either drive their children themselves or expect the educational institution to take up the responsibility for a certain fee. The latter is far popular due to the clash in timings between a parent’s work schedule and school break.

School transportation is far more convenient and, in the long-run, beneficial to the environment, as one bus covers a span of two to three neighbourhoods. In addition, students can be sure they reach in time for their classes.

The size of transportation is chosen based on the number of people living in a certain area. Bus routes are equally distributed in such a way that students can easily board the bus straight from their doorsteps.

Due to the changing trends in commuting and road safety, buses have improved its interiors to accommodate a comfortable journey.

Seatbelts, working air-conditioners and of course, using the stop sign (present on the side of the bus) have each gained importance.

Road authorities have reported a number of accidents due to poor conduct, improper safety features,

and one of the most evident but unnoticed danger, the heat, which gives all the more reason to keep up to standards.

Thanks to the advent of technology, buses are now equipped with the latest technology that not only measures the distance between cars (to avoid bumper-to-bumper collisions) but also offers Global Positioning System (GPS) for road guidance, and cameras within buses to record and monitor students’ behaviour.

In addition, educational institutions ensure that they provide nothing less than the best for students. Buses are run by qualified drivers and conductors, who know how to take care of passengers at all times. Conductors also assist children and teaching staff when crossing the road.

The Department of Transport (DoT) in Abu Dhabi, in coordination with the Abu Dhabi Education Council and Abu Dhabi Police GHQ revealed new legislations in 2013 that are directed at school buses to maintain certain standards.

These regulations call for a DoTissued permit for school bus drivers to ensure they are qualified for the position. This also requires them to carry out daily bus inspec-

tions, including checking the lights, tyres and seats, availability of first-aid kits and fire extinguishers, and obstacle-free entrance and exits. It also puts a curb on road speed limits — a maximum speed of 80 kilometres per hour.

It also covers the need to supervise children as they board and embark the bus, to provide proper facilities for special needs students, and that children under 11 years are handed to a guardian during drop-offs. Furthermore, DoT emphasises the importance

of its new regulations by making it compulsory to possess the permit else no bus will be registered, renewed or cancelled.

Each emirate is taking a step forward towards efficient school buses. In a bid to promote sustainable transportation, the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) in Dubai had hosted the School Transportation Conference and Exhibition last year, complete with seasoned experts and topics featuring regulation and legislation, planning and operation,

safety, technology and security. It also touched base on issues involving student management, challenges of students with special needs as well as increasing awareness among students.

The traffic has infamously contributed to the country’s carbon emissions, and in response, ecoconscious parents are now encouraging their children to carpool with trusted neighbours and relatives, or use the school bus.

— farhana@khaleejtimes.com

School Transportation

khaleej times / ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT

Undisputed leader Al Habtoor Motors answers the need for medium range buses with the Mitsubishi Rosa The growing education, transportation, industrial and various business sectors in the UAE have spurred the need for quality medium-sized buses to transport staff and individuals safely, reliably and comfortably.

Ever since its launch in the UAE in 1983, Mitsubishi Rosa with its advanced performance, unprecedented reliability and absolute safety features, has gained ground remarkably, to become the undisputed leader of medium range buses in the UAE market.

Al Habtoor Motors is the proud

distributor of the Mitsubishi Rosa Bus, which is the prestigious product of Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corporation, Japan (a part of the biggest business conglomerate, Daimler Group). The Rosa Bus is available as a SWB Standard Roof 26-Seater, High Roof 34-Seater, DLX High Roof 34-Seater 2 X 2 seats and DLX High Roof 30-Seater.

One of the sterling offerings of Mitsubishi to the UAE’s educational sector are the imported

Manning your safety needs Dubai Technologies has maintained its focus on developing systems through research and development

factory painted yellow school buses featuring ABS brakes from Japan, specifically for the use of schools as per the stipulations of the UAE Government. This is of great significance considering the safety of the school going children. To fulfil this commitment and cater to the needs of different kinds of applications without compromising on the standards laid by the RTA/DOT, Al Habtoor Motors has additionally opened a state-of-the-art

fabrication unit in DIC, Dubai.

A recent market survey has revealed that Rosa buses have a majority market share for the medium range buses reiterating its popularity in the UAE. The longevity of the engine, aesthetics of the vehicle and resale value are to be attributed to the success of the Rosa bus.

Al Habtoor Motors has aftersales facilities throughout the UAE to ensure smooth after-sales service to its valued clients.

Leaders in school transport services With 36 locations, Emirates Transport is able to provide services anytime, anywhere, within the UAE Emirates Transport (ET) was founded in 1981, with the aim of providing and managing transport and maintenance services for the benefit of various federal and local government agencies and private sector institutions.

The federal corporation is the primary school transport provider in the UAE, serving 674 public schools; reflecting a long and successful working relationship with the Ministry of Education and the Abu Dhabi Education Council.

Utilising its vast experience and resources in the field, the corporation has a dedicated centre serving private sector schools.

Fadi Khalil, Manager of the Private Schools Transport Centre at ET, said: “It was very important for Emirates Transport to enter the private schools market to offer our long-established experience to private schools throughout the country.

“We have a strong track record in the field and I think our presence is vital to enrich the choices for schools and parents, and improve overall competition in the market, without compromising on the high safety and operational standards that our children deserve.”

Emirates Transport has also recently launched bus supervisor services for private schools, through its Schools Services Centre.

Jasim Mohammed Al Shair, Manager of the centre, stated that private schools would now have the opportunity to use well-trained bus supervisors to improve transport safety for their students.

New bus supervisors receive comprehensive training covering various aspects of their role, including general health and safety, first aid, ethical and religious education, and skills to deal with students and their parents and with special needs students.

ET also established the University Transport Unit, which offers transport services to students of universities and colleges in Dubai, Sharjah, Ajman and the Central Region.

Emirates Transport has a proud record in corporate social responsibility, with an emphasis on community support and a firm commitment towards sustainable business practices, which has won the corporation a number of prestigious national and international awards.

With sites spread across 36 locations throughout the country, Emirates Transport is able to provide services anytime, anywhere, within the UAE.

Since its inception in 1994, Dubai Technologies has maintained its focus on developing systems through research and development. In 2011, the UAE-based company launched a school transport management system, STMan, which allows schools to keep a close eye on the transportation.

DT with its technology and domain “There is an ongoing expertise continuously upgrades the demand to make school STMan system to comply with the transportation safer. regulatory requirements. In accorSTMan System is dance with the guidelines of school developed with a focus and transport authorities (MOI, on safe transport for ESMA, and ADEC), the company has students, enabling integrated services into a one-stopschools and parents to shop solution for authorities, schools, track where the buses transportation providers and parents. are and who is on them.”

The new upgrade of STMan addresses Ahmed Alrafi all the aspects of school transport. It CEO consists of: • GPS/GPRS monitoring system • MDVR/CCTV with online monitoring and storage capability • Reverse view system for drivers • Driver and attendant monitoring • Driver behaviour monitoring such as harsh braking, overspeeding, harsh cornering, etc, including driver profiling • RFID-based student attendance and alert system to school and parents • Route scheduling, route monitoring including pick up and drop points management (stop points) • Smart application for schools and parents to monitor and receive alerts of bus ETA and status • Vehicle condition checklist that includes tyre pressure check, light check, empty bus verification (last seat check) • Vehicle service updates and maintenance alerts including registration, permits and stop sign alerts.

STMan provides an intelligent auto-monitoring agent for school transport to create schedules for each vehicle with their routes, stops and respective students in the route. The system will ensure adherence of vehicle routes in accordance with the schedule and alerts/escalate violations that ensure a technology eye over the entire operations.

DT also offers a complete managed service for recorded video data from MDVR and provides reliable storage services as per the authority’s requirements that simplify complex technology requirements for schools and transport providers.