The Texas Engineering Extension Service, a member of the Texas A&M University System, is offering a new course “Accident Avoidance for School Bus Drivers” free of charge through mid-September.
The course was introduced on June 22. It covers pre-driving preparation, adverse driving conditions, how to avoid common driver errors, how to respond to a tire blowout or a brake failure and best practice at railroad crossings, mountainous driving, nighttime driving and navigating city traffic.
Bill Lowery, TEEX’s transportation training director, said the on-line accident avoidance course will eventually be offered for $25 to $30 per student.
The one-hour refresher course reinforces what school bus drivers already should have learned when they first received their CDLs. The training provided is generic to all school bus drivers nationwide but does include links to more detailed topical information from school bus rules and regulations in Texas. Each participant can also set their own pace, meaning they can stop and re-start at any time. Upon successful completion, participants can print out their own certificate.
“It doesn’t necessarily qualify them as a school bus driver but offers them continuing education and awareness,” Lowery said, adding that TEEX is exploring the possibility of making the course even more generic by including links to national requirements governed by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.
TEEX first developed student transportation training 15 years ago with its 30-hour “School Bus Driver Train-the-Trainer” course that consists of one day of classroom training followed by two and a half days of behind-the-wheel training. Participants must be already licensed to drive a commercial passenger bus and must be a certified school bus driver. Lowery said this hands-on course is limited to four or five participants per instructor.
Train-the-trainer students are scored by each other by instructors on how well they learn special skills and how well they instruct co-participants in special bus handling skills.
TEEX also partners with the Texas Association for Pupil Transportation and has been an exhibitor at the annual conference and trade show. TAPT most recently offered the TEEX train-the-trainer course to members in March and June.
Lowery said TEEX initially offered its driver trainer course through the use of federal highway traffic safety funds from the Texas Department of Transportation. But, as the federal “seed” money has reduced the program has become self-sustaining through payment directly from school districts or even individual bus drivers, Lowery explained.
“Some districts have adopted this course as part of the progression for career advancement of their drivers,” he added.
