A study of school transportation in Georgia [brief summary]: program of educational development for Georgia [Jan. 1945]

THE LIBRARIES
THE
UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIAiT3

A Study of School Transportation
In Georgia
Brief Summary
Program of Educational Development
for Georgia
general library
MAY 4 ibtii
UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA
ISSUED BY
EDUCATION PANEL
Agricultural and Industrial Development Board of Georgia
Athens GeorgiaAGRICULTURAL AND INDUSTRIAL
DEVELOPMENT BOARD
OF
GEORGIA
Blanton Fortson Chairman
L Vaughan Howard Executive Director
Name of Member Address
Ivan AllenAtlanta
T F AbercrombieAtlanta
Charles L BowenMacon
W N BanksGrantville
Cason J CallawayHamilton
MDCollinsAtlanta
Ryburn G ClayAtlanta
Mrs Frank C DavidColumbus
Blanton FortsonAthens
Charles B GramlingAtlanta
Robert W GrovesSavannah
Alfred W JonesSea Island
TomLinderAtlanta
Wiley L MooreAtlanta
Walter R McDonaldAtlanta
Henry McIntoshAlbany
W H McNaughtonCartersville
J L PilcherMeigs
Robert StricklandAtlanta
MKing TuckerWaynesboro
Wilson WilliamsAtlanta
EDUCATION BULLETIN No 3
JANUARY 1945
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EDUCATION PANEL
M D Collins ChairmanAtlanta
Mrs Frank C DavidColumbus
Wilson Williams Athens
O C Aderhold DirectorAthens
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J E Greene
Claude Purcell
and
O C Aderhold W O Hampton
S P Clemons W A Stumpf
C A Williams Department of Public Safety
Preston Weeks Department of Public Safety
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Introduction
The study summarized in the following pages was made
by the Education Panel of the Agricultural and Industrial
Development Board It was made as a result of requests
from the county superintendents of schools boards of edu
cation and school patrons who have long recognized the need
for a factual appraisal of present conditions and practices as
a basis for determining ways of improving the safety the con
venience and the economy of pupil transportation The study
was plartned by the staff of the Panel and an AllState Com
mittee of one county superintendent of schools from each
congressional district and a member from the Stateatlarge
The personnel of the AllState Committee who participated
in the study are listed below
Name Position
W E McElveenCoSS
Percy P JonesCo S S
Grady McKinneyCo S S
N A RogersCoSS
C J HicksCoSS
C A ShealeyCoSS
J J MedlinCo S S
R E HoodCo S S
Grady JarrardCo S S
Mason WilliamsCo S S
P H DeBeaugrineCo S S
L O RogersChairman
Address Con Dist
Statesboro First
ColquittSecond
Hawkinsville Third
Franklin Fourth
Conyers Fifth
Sandersville Sixth
Rome Seventh
Brunswick Eighth
Gainesville Ninth
Monroe Tenth
Warrenton Tenth
Moultrie StateatLarge
Not without reason pupil transportation has been referred
to frequently as the stepchild of the school program Pro
grams of pupil transportation developed in Georgia without
much conscious planning or serious attention As a result
the area of pupil transportation provides some of the most
complex and difficult problems that confront public edu
cation in Georgia The latest available data indicate that 2
879 school buses transport 177734 children to and from
school daily or an average of 62 children per bus This
transportation service cost approximately 3000000 in 1944
The management and responsibility for school transporta
5tion varies greatly within the State and among the various
counties In some counties the management and responsibility
for pupil transportation has been left almost entirely to the
local district trustees which often results in duplication of
routing within the county and other evidences of inefficient
operation However in other counties the board of educa
tion has inaugurated a countywide program of transporta
tion which meets welldefined minimum standards for equip
ment operation maintenance drivers records and reports
Faulty management of transportation in many rural counties
has imposed a financial burden which threatens to deplete
their already meager financial resources and to prevent the
proper development of their alltoolimited instructional pro
grams
During recent years there has been a consistent tendency
for county superintendents of schools to request more financial
aid for transportation purposes and more supervisory assist
ance from the State Department of Education in planning
for greater safety convenience and economy in pupil trans
portation Under present legislation neither the State Board
of Education nor the State Department of Public Safety has
authority to prescribe minimum standards for the construction
and operation of school buses despite the fact that many
county school officials have requested the State Department
of Education to prescribe such minimum standards
Sources of Information
The summary statements which comprise the body of this
report are based on facts obtained from one or more of the
following sources
a Detailed information concerning 179 specific individual buses
in use during the year 194344 representing a weighted ran
dom sample of all publicly and privately owned buses op
erating during that year
b School bus inspection records on 2242 buses inspected by
the State Patrol in 1943 or approximately 78 percent of
all buses operating during that yearc State Department of Public Safety records on school bus
accidents in 1943 and 1944
d Reports from State Departments of Education the U S
Office of Education and certain published and unpublished
literature on pupil transportation
Data from the abovenamed sources were subjected to sta
tistical treatment and other types of careful analyses The
statements which follow are presented as a highly condensed
summary of some of the most important findings A more
detailed report is available to interested persons For the con
venience of the reader the summarized findings are arranged
under the following topical headings 1 Safety 2 Pupil
Health and Convenience 3 Factors Related to Cost and
4 Conclusions and Recommendations
Safety
That school bus equipment in Georgia is seriously defective
with respect to many features of bus construction and opera
tion is evidenced by the following findings
a Only three out of four school buses have allsteel bodies
b One out of five school buses does not have safety glass in
the windshield and one out of three buses does not have
safety glass in windows and doors
c One out of twenty school buses does not have rear emergen
cy doors and an additional 10 percent of buses have rear
emergency doors that do not meet safety standards
d One out of eleven buses lacks a windshield wiper and one
out of eight additional buses has a defective wiper
e State Patrol school bus inspection reports reveal that lack
of windshield wipers is an important contributing factor to
serious accidents
f Only seven out of ten school buses have either hydraulic
or air brakes
g One out of ten buses has defective foot brakes and three
out of ten hand brakes are in a defective condition
h State Patrol school bus accident reports indicate that defective brakes are a significant contributing factor to serious
accidents
i One out of thirteen buses has one or more defective tires
j Four out of ten buses have defective exhausts and one out
of seven buses releases dangerous fumes
k One out of twenty buses has defective rear visibility
1 Six out of ten buses are without useful mechanical stop
signal
m One out of twelve buses does not meet specifications of
the State law with respect to school bus signs
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Three out of four buses are not equipped with satisfactory
firstaid kits
Only one out of five buses has a fire extinguisher and one
half of these are in defective condition
Only one out of four buses is equipped with satisfactory
flares and flags
One out of six buses has one or more dangerous stops
r The typical school bus in 1944 carried a passenger load
at least 50 percent greater than its rated seating capacity
s The State Patrol school bus accident reports reveal that
many drivers of Georgia school buses lack proper qualifica
tions
t The recorded violations by school bus drivers include Mak
ing a turn or stop without proper signals improper super
vision of pupil loading and unloading reckless driving
drunkenness lack of a chauffeurs license lack of a bus
license etc
Public Health and Convenience
That as presently operated pupil transportation systems
in Georgia do not provide sufficiently for the health and the
convenience of pupils particularly at younger age levels is
shown by the following findings
a The typical child transported to and from school leaves
home about 730 in the morning and returns to his home
about 430 in the afternoon He spends about one hour
daily on a bus
8b The typical passenger has to wait 24 minutes after bus
arrival for school to open and has to wait 18 minutes after
school is dismissed in order to catch a bus
c It is probable that because of faulty transportation practices
pupils are subjected to inconveniences and strains that seri
ously interfere with their educational experiences and home
duties and adjustments
d It would require an additional 1968 buses to provide
enough equipment so that no bus would transport more
than one load of pupils to and from school daily
e Only one out of six buses is equipped with a heater
f The typical bus carries at least 50 percent more passengers
than its rated seating capacity and many buses carry more
than twice as many passengers as their rated seating capacity
g One bus body out of twelve is homemade Many of these
bodies lack proper emergency doors weatherproof tops
windows etc
Factors Related to Cost
That many opportunities exist for improving the economy
in the purchase and the operation of all types of school buses in
Georgia is evidenced by the following findings
a Variations in prices paid by different buyers for identical
pieces of standard equipment eg 1942 standard chassis
by a given manufacturer are often wide and indicate
that in some instances public money is expended uneco
nomically
b There is also a wide variation in prices paid by different
buyers for identical types of supplies For example certain
buses regularly pay from two to three cents a gallon higher
price for regular or hightest gas than do other buses in
the same locality
c Comparisons of prices paid for standard equipment in Geor
gia and in comparable Southern States indicate that present
practices of purchasing equipment in Georgia are less eco
nomical than in these states For example North Carolina
Alabama and Mississippi are purchasing buses comparable
to those used in Georgia at prices from 200 to 500
cheaper per unit than prices paid in this State These
economies are made possible through a system of central
purchasing or contract pricing under State supervision
9That a vast reservoir of need is being developed for new
equipment to replace outworn equipment and to supplement
overused equipment and that appropriate policies for the
purchase of such equipment by central purchasing or contract
pricing under State supervision would greatly reduce the
purchase costs of equipment are conclusions which seem war
ranted by the following findings
a Had they been available 336 bodies and 368 chassis would
have been purchased in 1944 to replace outworn equipment
b During the year 1945 there is estimated to be an additional
replacement need in Georgia for 736 chassis and 512 bodies
c The overall warproduction situation now makes it seem
likely that replacement needs for school transportation
equipment cannot possibly be met as rapidly as such needs
develop Therefore it seems highly probable that by 1946
there will be an accumulated demand for as many as 1489
chassis and 1224 bodies for replacement purposes alone
assuming no increase in the total number of buses required
to serve present routes
Conclusions and Recommendations
The evidence presented in the preceding sections of this
report reveals the presence of conditions that need immediate
attention Some of the equipment in use is not only make
shift but also hazardous to the safety and the health of school
children drivers in some instances have been incompetent
or criminally careless routes have been duplicated because
of competition among the school districts scheduling and
routing practices often have placed unnecessary strains upon
the health and the convenience of passengers and costs for
equipment and supplies sometimes have been excessive as com
pared with the services rendered and as contrasted with cost
practices in comparable states By 1946 there probably will be
a need for 2000 buses to replace outworn and overused equip
ment If this number of buses were bought under a system
of central purchasing or contract pricing it is estimated that
a potential saving of not less than 500000 could be effected
10However before school bus equipment can be purchased
cooperatively through the State Supervisor of Purchasing or
through a system of contract pricing it would be necessary
for the State Board of Education to prescribe minimum speci
fications for new bus equipment These specifications not
only would serve as a basis for competitive bidding but also
would tend to promote greater safety and economy in the
operation of school buses At present the State Board of
Education has no legal authority to prescribe regulations of
the type of buses which appear to be needed
In view of the findings summarized in the preceding sections
of this report it is the judgment of the Education Panel of the
Agricultural and Industrial Development Board that
a The responsibility of providing transportation services for
the schools of a county should be vested in the county board
of education
b In order to promote greater economy and safety in school
transportation provisions should be made whereby school
transportation equipment and supplies may be bought
through a system of central purchasing or contact pricing
c The State Board of Education should be empowered to
adopt rules and regulations to provide for uniformity eco
nomy and safety in the operation of school buses regard
ing the qualifications of school bus drivers the contracts
between county boards of education and school bus drivers
and the procedure to be followed by county boards of edu
cation in securing means of school bus transportation
d No member of the State Board of Education or employee
of the State Department of Education or county superin
tendent of schools or member of a county board of edu
cation should be financially interested in providing means
or facilities for school bus transportation or in selling trans
portation equipment or supplies to county boards of edu
cation
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UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA LIBRARIES
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