Every day, many Woodcreek students load onto school buses and depend on this method of transportation to take them to and from school. However, so much more goes into this system than meets the eye. From security systems to multiple departments to common day to day activities, the Humble ISD Transportation System works very hard to service Woodcreek students and beyond.
Many students may notice that there are camera systems on the bus. According to Jerry Burd, the director of transportation in Humble ISD, “the camera systems can be viewed live remotely if needed. In certain situations we may need to watch live or download video remotely while a bus is near a campus for instance. Most of the time, the cameras and recordings are viewed once the buses return to the service center so we can download videos.”
In addition, there are GPS devices put into each bus that tracks where the buses go. Mr. Burd added, “All our buses are equipped with GPS tracking, 2-way radios, and up to 9 cameras with audio located both inside and outside the bus.”
The Humble ISD Transportation Department is bigger than most students realize. They have a budget of $15, over 350 employees, 300 buses and 250 white fleet vehicles. When Mr. Burd arrives every morning, he checks in with everyone and does things like review footage or make sure routes are covered properly and responds to a few emails by his team.
There are many roles in the department. Routers begin by mapping and scheduling routes, and then Dispatchers man the radios and schedule drivers. Supervisors ensure everything is going smoothly and supervise drivers as they drive students all across the district. The Shop Foreman and the Fuel Clerks ensure buses are properly filled and in good condition. Finally, there are also Payroll Clerks, Support and Office Administrators who work together to keep business going. Mr. Burd has been working with us for a long time and he’s good at making sure everything is under good maintenance and everyone is doing their job. Entering his sixth year with the district, he has done an excellent job making sure that the Transportation Department has been doing well.
However, despite all this organization, some day to day occurrences still take place. For example, Mr. Burd said that “Common issues on buses for students would be forgetting items, or leaving items on buses. We routinely find lost cell phones, earbuds, and wallets after routes. Once in a while a student misses their bus stop if they aren’t paying attention, but for the most part, we get everyone dropped off where they need to be.”
Last year, Autumn Ridge Middle School opened up, and many Woodcreek students began attending this new school. While many may have expected Autumn Ridge to have more bus routes, Mr. Burd said, “There wasn’t a big change with ARMS opening really. This campus is primarily a non-bussed school, especially since it is located in a large neighborhood/community. There are only 3 regular buses, plus a few special needs buses that serve it. Compared to WMS and its 16 regular buses, there are significantly less student riders.”
In conclusion, bus routes have some minor difficulties in their day to day operations, but they still get the job done and get children where they need to go safely.
