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"Why buy school bus transportation software when Google is right there?"
This is probably one of the most common questions we hear, when talking about BusBoss with potential customers. After all, Google offers several products for creating maps and routes between locations, and even has Streetview for seeing those routes in pictorial form. Isn't that good enough?
Well... no.
Modern bus routing and reporting software has evolved over decades to include numerous features that schools need, which you simply aren't going to get from free alternatives.
What Can Routing Software Do That Google Maps Can't?
1 - Support for unlimited routes
If you're looking up routes in Google, you have to do it one at a time. Even creating a single set of routes this way could take days; it'd be only slightly better than using a physical map and pushpins.
Meanwhile, dedicated software can create dozens or even hundreds of routes all at once, within a few seconds.
2 - Customized routing based on your needs
Options for creating routes in Google Maps are extremely limited, generally just time, distance, or avoiding highways. That's not enough for the needs of a modern school district. You should be able to minmax your routes for dozens of factors, as well as being able to implement per-day changes in routes - such as if a child of divorced parents has to take two different buses, depending on the day, due to split custody.
3 - Bus and student tracking
A well-equipped school transportation office should be able to track every bus on its route, as well as which children are on the bus. This is simply impossible with free tools. You need a centralized software solution which can take in GPS and student ID data and feed them to your office. That way, you can truly monitor your routes in progress, and substantially improve student safety though oversight.
4 - State reporting
Google can't help you with your state reports either, but bus management software can! The right software package can collect and collate all the data you need for your reporting, and potentially even include templates for common state reports. This doesn't just speed up your reporting; it greatly reduces the chances of human error causing you to lose funding.
In short, school bus transportation management software is truly worth the expense, and can easily pay for itself through cost-savings and efficiency. Contact BusBoss to learn more!
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PRESIDENT
Sonia has been involved with BusBoss since the late 1990’s, and has personally overseen many projects for various customers ranging from large urban and suburban districts to smaller rural school districts from all over the country.
(484) 941-0820