Optional safety features offered by school bus manufacturers are described. These include design changes, automated crossing arms, convex mirrors, strobe lights, and sound warning devices. (TE)

This special section on student transportation offers a case study of a school system that recycles buses for safety drills; articles on fuel-saving strategies, the pros and cons of contracting for transportation services or operating a publicly owned bus fleet, and advice on full cost accounting for transportation costs; and a transportation…

Some pioneering school systems are making travel time more productive by playing videotapes or audiotapes on board school buses. A California district uses a traveling computer laboratory to visit 10 elementary schools. Safety and bureaucratic regulations are considered. (MLF)

The state of Oklahoma recently published a school bus driver manual on transporting handicapped students. Yearly inservice training sessions are recommended to teach school bus drivers communication skills, use of special equipment for physically handicapped students, and preparation for emergencies. (MLF)

School systems will soon be using microcomputers to design their school bus routes and aid in the management of transportation programs. Offers guidelines to bring microcomputer bus management to school systems. (MLF)

Computerized bus-routing systems plot the most efficient routes, cut the time it takes to draw routes, and generate reports quickly and accurately. However, school districts often underestimate the amount of work necessary to get information into the computer database. (MLF)

A special report on school transportation covers the following topics: (1) a school bus safety update; (2) equipping school buses with motion detectors; (3) state training requirements for school bus drivers; (4) recruiting and retaining drivers; (5) regulations covering underground fuel-storage tanks; and (6) a transportation directory. (MLF)