b'Electronic stability controls, shown here on a Blue Bird school bus, help prevent rollovers and are a complimentary technology to collision mitigation systems.20 are IC buses with the new factory-installed collisionI personally have these [similar] advanced features on mitigation systems from Bendix Commercial Vehiclemy car, said Kim Crabtree, director of transportation for Solutions. Bend La Pine Schools in Oregon. I believe these addi-Harper said that as he began the procurement process,tional safety features are significant in regard to safety. he ventured out to a test facility where he experiencedThe addition of these systems to school buses will help the technology at work. They put us on a bus and wa- reduce collisions. With continual distractionschildren, tered down a track, recalled Harper. Then they put a carpedestrians, vehicles on the road, distracted driversthe in front of us. We were doing 50 miles per hour. Thenadditional features will help increase the safety for all.they put on the brakes. Crabtree said she views collision mitigation systems He found himself not wearing his seat belt and facingas an essential tool in an age where drivers are in-an imminent crash situation on a slippery road surface. creasingly distracted. With the increase of distracted Harper recalled that he was amazed at the collisiondriving, whether from the bus drivers standpoint or avoidance capabilities afforded by the system during thedistracted driving from others on the road, any safety test, and the control it provided. [It was] an eye-openingfeatures we can add to prevent an accident or rollover is experience to me, he remarked. So, I immediately camemoney well spent. back and went to work with my board and people fromCrabtree noted that especially distracted motorists that the state to try and get this thing [approved]. share the road with school buses have increased substan-Eventually, Harper and his associates won the approvaltially. Some manufacturers include the stability control to procure the 20 new buses. on all of their new buses. I believe features such as these can help our drivers and increase safety for the bus driv-Positive View er and the public.Like Harper, most other transportation directors see theTom Burr is the director of transportation with St. Paul value in the collision mitigation technology. However,Public Schools in St. Paul, Minnesota. He, like Crabtree, like most new purchases by school systems nowa- compares the value of collision mitigation technology days, cost often stands in the way. Many directors areto that of anti-lock braking systems (ABS) on cars. These convinced of the value. The challenge, though, is insystems on school buses are designed more for heavy-duty spreading the belief that the investment should be theoperations. Those designs are more of a match to the per-highest priority. formance of a school bus in a tight operational situation, or 38School Transportation NewsSEPTEMBER 2019'