POPLAR BLUFF, Mo. � Poplar Bluff R-I has launched an app to allow parents to track the location of students utilizing the district’s bus system.
The app, entitled Here Comes the Bus, allows families to receive updates on the arrival and departure of students� buses via smartphone app or website. The app refreshes every 30 seconds to give the most up to date information on the whereabouts of students within 750 feet and two miles of a user’s home.
“It literally takes the guesswork out for parents–the non-knowing, the uncertainty of what time my student was dropped off at school,� said Jon McKineey, the district’s transportation director. “It also helps parents better foresee, knowing the weather’s inclement, what time they need to leave or send a sibling out.�
The app allows guardians to track more than one student from his or her family at a time. App users can set up smartphone push notifications via email or SMS. This feature is only allowed for individuals listed as a student’s emergency contact.
Students will scan the barcode on their district IDs at the start and conclusion of a bus ride. This signals to caregivers using the Here Comes the Bus app that their child’s bus has departed or arrived. For younger riders, the bus drivers will be able to input information into a touchscreen device if needed.
Parents began signing up for the app at the district’s open house. A code unique to each child’s school as well as the student’s identification number must be entered to sign in to the app.
The app was tested this past spring at Poplar Bluff’s Early Childhood and Kindergarten centers. Roughly 30 parents took part in the test group. Group-participant Maribel Zimmerman said the app has helped �100 percent.�
“[The app] tells you exactly when the child has gotten on the bus, when they have gotten to school, when they have gotten back on after school, and when the child’s home,� said Jason Davis, a district bus driver. “It’s just continuous communication.�
The app’s GPS-based software was funded through dollars in the Fall 2021/Spring 2022 year with dollars from the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund.
The Poplar Bluff School District sees about 2,200 riders over 50 buses daily, completing more than 200 routes. For parents without the app, contact the bus garage at 573-785-5801.
