Autoblog

Bus drivers fired for illegal street racing with students on board

Jeremy Korzeniewski — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 16:01:00 EST

Filed under: Government/Legal, Hirings/Firings/Layoffs, Safety, Videos

"Even Mitchell knows, racing a school bus full of kids is never a good idea," says the newscaster. And Mitchell Brennan is only seven years old.

Sadly, at least two bus drivers in Iowa had to learn the hard way that street racing school buses with elementary school children on board "is never a good idea," losing their jobs in the process. According to reports, one driver decided to pass the one in front on a snowy day in February while schlepping the kids back from a Valentine's Day activity. The kids cheered, for a little while at least, until they realized that the other driver wasn't slowing down to let their bus overtake.

According to school officials, the bus driver who attempted the errant pass on wintry roads was fired immediately, while the other driver was given time to explain his actions - claiming that he had the bus in cruise control and simply didn't slow down - before being fired a short time later.

Scroll down below for a video from the local NBC affiliate.

Continue reading Bus drivers fired for illegal street racing with students on board

Bus drivers fired for illegal street racing with students on board originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 05 Mar 2013 16:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Teens hate riding the bus, but love drifting in it

Jonathon Ramsey — Thu, 15 Nov 2012 19:59:00 EST

Filed under: Etc., Videos, Humor

The last time we saw a bus drifting it was in a commercial for public transportation in Denmark. The last time we saw Nitro Circus it was waging off-road paintball battles by land and by air. Combine the two and what do you get? An off-roading school bus that can drift in a parking lot and in the mud, but not before setting the whole rear end on fire.

Kids would never be late to school if they got this kind of ride. Check out the gliding, patriotic coach you wish you had in the video below.

Continue reading Teens hate riding the bus, but love drifting in it

Teens hate riding the bus, but love drifting in it originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 15 Nov 2012 19:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Don't drive on the sidewalk in Cleveland, or this might happen to you [w/poll]

Jeffrey N. Ross — Thu, 08 Nov 2012 12:45:00 EST

Filed under: Etc., Government/Legal, Safety, Videos

There are undoubtedly hefty fines for passing a stopped school bus with its flashing lights on and stop sign deployed, so Shena Hardin, 32, of Cleveland, Ohio, thought it would be an acceptable alternative to use the sidewalk to pass instead. Back in September, Hardin was seen using the sidewalk as a bypass on multiple occasions, and a quick-thinking bus driver videotaped her doing so and alerted police. On September 11, police were able to catch her Jeep Compass in the act, and this week, a judge doled out her punishment.

Despite video evidence showing her driving on the sidewalk twice, Hardin plead Not Guilty to charges of not stopping for a school bus and reckless operation at a September court hearing, but the judge found otherwise. In addition to a $250 fine and 30-day suspension of her driver's license, the judge also ordered Hardin to stand at an intersection near where she dodged the bus wearing a sign that says "Only an idiot drives on the sidewalk to avoid a school bus." She'll be out there next Tuesday and Wednesday from 7:45 am to 8:45 am.

Scroll down to watch a video of Hardin's dangerous maneuver, and then let us know what you think of her punishment in the poll below.

View Poll

Continue reading Don't drive on the sidewalk in Cleveland, or this might happen to you [w/poll]

Don't drive on the sidewalk in Cleveland, or this might happen to you [w/poll] originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 08 Nov 2012 12:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Brave kid stops runaway school bus when driver has seizure

Chris Shunk — Sat, 14 Apr 2012 18:02:00 EST

Filed under: Videos

If you found yourself in a situation where lives were in danger, would you step up and be the hero?
Junior high students in Milton, Washington were confronted with just such a scenario, and 13-year-old Jeremy Wuitschick manned up in a big way.

When his bus driver went into convulsions, he shot out of his seat, grabbed the wheel, pulled the bus over and had the presence of mind to pull the keys from the ignition. Wuitschick may have averted catastrophe with his actions. Hit the jump to see the hero in action.

Continue reading Brave kid stops runaway school bus when driver has seizure

Brave kid stops runaway school bus when driver has seizure originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 14 Apr 2012 18:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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PSA: Some states now using school bus-mounted traffic cameras

Jonathon Ramsey — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 15:30:00 EST

Filed under: Government/Legal, Safety, Technology

City councils and state legislatures across the country are debating and passing initiatives to put traffic cameras on school buses. Rick Gresham, transportation director for the Cobb County school district in Georgia, told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that 1,100 motorists pass his school buses when the stop sign paddle is out every single day. The state of Maryland reported 7,200 such incidents in one day last year. For all the folks who want to see that bus-riding children get to class and home safely, that's a problem. So cities in places like Georgia, Connecticut, Maryland, Washington and Louisiana are talking to Redflex and American Traffic Solutions about mounting cameras on their buses' folding stop signs.

In the case of the potential Redflex system in Connecticut, for instance, the school districts would pay a set fee for each bus fitted with a camera. The cameras send a live feed of traffic in both directions to Redflex, where Redflex employees review it. If a motorist is caught violating the stop sign, an image and relevant information is sent to the police department. The school district would receive 82 percent of the ticket amount, the rest going to police and court costs.

A Harris study conducted on behalf of ACS, a Xerox company, found that 77 percent of adults polled supported installation of these cameras on school buses. ACS makes its own system called CrossSafe, so it's certainly interested in a particular result, but as others have said, it's hard to argue against child safety, so this may be the first application of traffic cameras we can really get behind.

PSA: Some states now using school bus-mounted traffic cameras originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 20 Jan 2012 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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15,500 Navistar school buses recalled over fire possibility

Zach Bowman — Fri, 26 Aug 2011 18:30:00 EST

Filed under: Recalls, Safety, Work, Specialty

The New York Times is reporting that Navistar is recalling 15,500 school buses over a fire risk. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration the popular buses were built with a positive alternator cable that could rub against a mounting bracket. Should the cable's insulation be compromised, the electrical system could malfunction, potentially resulting in a fire. The recall covers 2007-2012 model-year buses, including the BE and CE series. The report says that Navistar itself filed the recall and that so far, no fires have been reported from vehicles in the field.

Navistar is based in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and manufacturers a number of heavy-duty vehicles for everything from construction and farm use to people and cargo conveyance. The BE and CE series buses are built by subsidiary IC Bus.

15,500 Navistar school buses recalled over fire possibility originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 26 Aug 2011 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jet-powered school bus reaches 350 mph, eliminates tardy slips

Zach Bowman — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 12:31:00 EST

Filed under: Aftermarket, Performance, Specialty

School Time Jet Bus - Click above to watch video after the jump

Riding the bus to school was never exactly a pleasure cruise, but when we turned 15, it suddenly moved from a lower form of torture like water boarding and squarely into the realm of driving bamboo under our fingernails. Having tasted the freedom afforded by piloting the family Suburban into the high school parking lot with a pale, wide-eyed parent pleading to various deities from the passenger seat, being forced back into the worst possible interpretation of public transportation was an insult too great to stand.

Things might have been different if we'd been riding this beast to school.

Built by Paul Stender and his crew of mad scientists at IndyBoys, Inc, the School Time Jet Bus is a 35-foot long cheese wagon with a 42,000-horsepower GE J-79 jet engine borrowed from an F4 Phantom. While most of the vehicle is a complete custom creation, it can still seat up to three passengers. Did we mention it shoots 75-foot flames? According to the IndyBoys web site, the bus is built to topple the 350 mph barrier, but it's unclear as to whether or not anyone has been brave enough to get the bus close to that speed. Hit the jump for a video of the creation showing off at an airshow. Thanks for the tip, Lawrence!

[Source: CNet]

Continue reading Jet-powered school bus reaches 350 mph, eliminates tardy slips

Jet-powered school bus reaches 350 mph, eliminates tardy slips originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 09 Aug 2010 12:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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25 School districts now offering Autonet Wifi on school buses

Sam Abuelsamid — Tue, 18 May 2010 18:32:00 EST

Filed under: Technology

Over two dozen school districts across the country have equipped school buses with AutoNet mobile WiFi routers allowing students to access the 'Net on the go. The Autonet system is a basic wireless router like the ones that hundreds of millions of people use at home, but with an integrated EVDO cellular modem to keep connected on the go.

The same system has been offered as a dealer installed option by Chrysler for the last two years and General Motors recently announced that it would begin offering the units in some of its vehicles as well. The cost is relatively modest, with Chrysler charging about $500 for the unit and $30 per month for the wireless service.

Whether schools should be spending money on these types of services is debatable, but in rural districts like the Vail School District in Arizona, it could be a good way to distract students that have to ride the bus for two or more hours a day. Of course this is only helpful if the kids can actually afford a laptop or other internet-connected device.

[Source: National Public Radio]

25 School districts now offering Autonet Wifi on school buses originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 18 May 2010 18:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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End of unsafe era: (Some) School buses to get seat belts

Chris Shunk — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 16:29:00 EST

Filed under: Government/Legal, Safety

My wife and I thoroughly trained our oldest daughter on seat belt safety, and it got to the point where she would scream at the top of her lungs if one of us didn't buckle our belts. When she first stepped foot on a school bus, she was terrified to learn that there were no seat belts and didn't understand how school buses were the exception to the seat belt rule. After many years of extensive study, however, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is changing that, at least for buses weighing under 10,000 lbs. The NHTSA's findings are the same as a 2002 study that smaller buses should receive belts and seat backs should be raised to 24 inches, but nothing was done about the findings back then. A series of bus crashes since has helped build the case to finally require the seat belts on certain buses and taller seat backs for them all.

Part of the reason for inaction was that adding seat belts would decrease seating capacity by 17% while also adding $40-$50 per seat to bus costs. With 25 million children riding 500,000 buses, that adds up to $100 million in annual costs that would, according to reports, save roughly one life per year. Statistics show that about 5 children die each year in school bus accidents, which represents .1 deaths per 100 million miles traveled. Kids that travel by bike to school die at a far greater rate of 12.2 per 100 million miles traveled, and kids who walk to school die at a rate of 8.7 per 100 million. The NHTSA's ruling goes into effect November 2011, which is five months before my oldest daughter rides the bus for the last time and gets into her own car.

[Source: Detroit News, photo by gareth_lofthouse | CC 2.0]

End of unsafe era: (Some) School buses to get seat belts originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 15 Oct 2008 16:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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AutoblogGreen for 03.20.07

Sam Abuelsamid — Tue, 20 Mar 2007 06:48:00 EST

Filed under: Green, GM, Honda, Saturn, Toyota, Volkswagen

AutoblogGreen got to take a look at the testing process that new battery technologies go through before they get on the road in new hybrid vehicles. Speaking of hybrids, a California psychologist examines whether driving one can really make you eternally happy. Oil is the only thing the middle east has in abundance. Desert regions have a lot of sun and an inventor in the United Arab Emirates has developed a two seat car that derives it's energy exclusively from the sun.

AutoblogGreen for 03.20.07 originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 20 Mar 2007 06:48:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Police Chief tickets himself and docks 4 points off license

Chris Shunk — Tue, 06 Feb 2007 17:11:00 EST

Filed under: Etc., Safety

If you've ever blown past a school bus with its lights flashing, here's proof that there is absolutely no excuse. Even Kewaskum Wisconson Police Chief Richard Knoebe isn't above the law as the officer gave himself a $235 ticket and 4 points on his driving record for passing a flashing school bus while in his patrol car. What's amazing is that the officer even had a good excuse for passing the bus. He was approaching a stopped dump truck when he saw a vehicle passing from behind. He was busy passing the truck when he belatedly noticed the school bus. Since Knoebe was the only officer around, he wrote himself up and paid the fine the next day. We're guessing Knoebe received his Cub Scout honesty badge without any issues.

The incident occurred back in September but went unnoticed until recently when a local newspaper noticed the infraction in the court records.

[Source: MSN]

Police Chief tickets himself and docks 4 points off license originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 06 Feb 2007 17:11:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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