|
|
|
|
Ontario's Ombudsman Will Probe School Bus Driver Shortage
 Article By: CBC News (Toronto)
With Edits By: OSBA
Article Date: September 9, 2016
Ontario's ombudsman is looking into whether a systemic investigation is warranted into a reported school bus shortage in Toronto.
Since September 1, 2015 the ombudsman's mandate has included overseeing all Ontario school boards.
"Among other things, our staff will look into what happened, what plans the school boards had in place, and what was done to inform parents," Paul Dube said, adding that the assessment will be done as quickly as possible.
At a news conference about all-day kindergarten Friday, Ontario's education minister Mitzie Hunter told reporters she expects Toronto's school boards to work with bus companies to solve the shortage. The province provides funding for the transportation, but it's up to school boards to figure out the co-ordination of buses, she said.
"We're meeting the demands that are being asked of us," Hunter said. "Since 2013 we've provided a 40 per cent increase of funding to the school boards."
"I'm concerned," said the education minister. "This is something I'm monitoring very, very closely."
An ombudsman's investigation could see Dubé make recommendations to solve the problem as well as to improve transportation services for the future.
|
|
2016 OSBA Driver Excellence Recognition Award
 Once again this year, OSBA will be recognizing the exceptional efforts put forth by thousands of school bus drivers each and every day. OSBA will present an award to recognize an extraordinary school bus driver who has demonstrated exemplary performance and a commitment to excellence, particularly in the areas of driving, customer service and safety.
If you would like to nominate someone from your company, or are aware of a very special school bus driver in your area, please submit the following nomination form by Sept. 30, 2016 to info@osba.on.ca. The form can be found at the following links:
All nomination forms will be reviewed and one candidate will be selected by a committee of the OSBA Board of Directors. The awards will be presented on Oct. 27, 2016 at the Blue Mountain Resort, Collingwood during the Ontario Association of School Business Officials (OASBO) annual pupil transportation conference (to be confirmed).
We look forward to hearing from you by Sept. 30th. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us at info@osba.on.ca.
|
|
|
Plan Now For School Bus Safety Week and School Bus Driver Appreciation Day
October 17-21, 2016 is School Bus Safety Week, a special opportunity for bus companies, school boards/transportation consortia, media, parents, students, teachers, motorists and many others - to come together and reinforce the importance and safe image/brand of student transportation. “Bully Free Zone!” is this year’s OSBA theme (adopted from NAPT). It helps remind everyone that differences should be respected not ridiculed. A bully free environment is important so that children can feel secure travelling to and from school knowing that bullying will not be tolerated and that there is an ongoing commitment of keeping all kids safe. POSTER BELOW IS COMING TO YOU SOON – please place in driver areas and any other location you think appropriate!
Wednesday, October 19, 2016 is School Bus Driver Appreciation Day. Please send us information regarding your driver appreciation activities so that we may highlight in the OSBA newsletter. School bus drivers are a very special and talented group of people who embrace a tremendous responsibility to ensure kids remain protected and out of harm’s way each and every day.
|
|
New Member Joins OSBA Team!
 Alex Bugeya of Frontline Commercial Vehicle Solutions has joined OSBA as a part-time Safety and Legislative Contractor to replace Dave Carroll. Alex will assist members by providing the same one-on-one access and consultation to expert safety and regulatory assistance on a wide variety of issues ranging from driver medicals, licensing, inspections, CVOR issues….to child seats, occupant restraints, railway crossing laws, strobe lights, school bus stopping laws, securement of wheelchairs, walkers, skateboards and much, much more. This exceptional service is available to each and every OSBA member – individually or via OSBA webinars! Alex can be reached directly at: abugeya@osba.on.ca or 416.695.9965 Ext. 4.
Alex brings a wealth of experience and knowledge from his various positions and work at the Ontario Ministry of Transportation (MTO). Alex was previously the Head of Enforcement Program Evaluation, Senior Facility Audit Administrator and a Transportation Enforcement Officer/Highway Carrier Safety Inspector for a number of years. During this time with the MTO, Alex was certified as a Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA) inspector, performing Level I to VI inspections on trucks and buses. He is also the Recipient of the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal, North American Grand Champion of the CVSA North American Inspector’s Championship, winner of the Ontario National Safety Code Challenge including the Driver Inspection and Dangerous Goods Inspection categories, along with a host of other awards not listed here.
Alex also brings an abundance of training and instructor experience to the table including his time spent as a CVSA Part A (driver) and B (vehicle) Instructor, a provincial MTO Bus Inspection Tracking System (BITS) and School Bus Inspection Instructor, MTO Moving Violations Lead Instructor and an MTO Basic Training Instructor for Hours of Service, Equipment, PMVI, Daily Inspections, CVOR, Drivers Licences and Vehicle Registration. Alex has also been an instructor for MTO Facility Audit Program.
OSBA is very excited and pleased to have Alex’s breadth and depth of knowledge to assist members, particularly his past experience in providing guidance and technical advice as a subject matter expert for government policies and the commercial vehicle transportation industry, as well as many recommendations to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of the Carrier Safety and Enforcement program.
Once again, feel free to contact Alex directly at abugeya@osba.on.ca or 416.695.9965 Ext. 4.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us at info@osba.on.ca.
|
|
P.R.I.D.E. Recertification Program - November 23rd Program Almost SOLD OUT
 The Sept. 20th P.R.I.D.E. Recertification Program is fully booked and there are a few spaces left in the November 23rd program. Don’t be disappointed, register today!
P.R.I.D.E. Programs are held at the Admiral Inn Burlington, www.admiralinn.com/burlington/.
Registration is on a first-come, first-served basis. Contact for further information - info@osba.on.ca
|
|
Meet The Couple Travelling All Over America In A Converted School Bus
 Article By: Metro News (UK)
Article Date: September 10, 2016
Everybody wonders at some point in their life if they should just quit their job, sell up and travel around in an arty school bus. Mogli, Felix and their dog Rudi have done just that and we can’t help but feel a little bit jealous.
Once a bright yellow vehicle, the bus has been transformed into a home – complete with a star-gazing spot, a shower with marine handmade tiles and even a dog-bed. The couple, who have been dating for three years, wanted to move out of their flat in Berlin to get away from the confines of city life.
Felix told Metro.co.uk: ‘The main reason for leaving Berlin was our Bernese Mountain dog Rudi. He’s not allowed to take the stairs, because of his hips. So I carried him all the way to the third floor where our loft in Berlin was. Once he reached 80 pounds when 4 months old it was time to get out of there.’
Mogli and Felix purchased a 20-year-old school bus over the internet for £7,000 before catching a plane to New York to start transforming it. The couple had not seen the bus before buying it and moving half way across the world.
It took 12 weeks of gruelling work to complete the conversion. Though neither of the pair were construction experts (they freely admit that they had “no idea what they were doing”), they rapidly learnt the basics in February of this year.
The bus is now fitted with a fully-functioning kitchen, a queen-size bed, a flat-screen TV (complete with Netflix) and a bathroom. The result is a Pinterest-perfect home on wheels.
The couple started their journey in Alaska and headed south from there, having now hit Vancouver. They plan to take their house on wheels down the 30,000 km Pan-American highway all the way to at least Panama.
Their home was previously a school bus for 20 years in Pennsylvania and had been driven for almost 193,121 km when they bought it. It could hold 72 passengers, which gives you an idea of the size.
 It is not the first time that Felix Starck decided to take off explore. In 2013 he decided to cycle 17,000 km around the world. His adventure started off in Germany and around Asia, before ending up in the US.
It was partly for this reason that the couple decided to move on from Germany. Once the documentary recording his time cycling became a hit, the pair started to get recognized in Berlin. They knew at this point that it was time to leave.
Now the creative couple wake up and drive wherever they wish to explore. The result? Social media accounts you won’t want to look at if you can’t go travelling anytime soon.
Although it may have seemed like a rather rash decision to purchase a bus they had never set eyes on, their random purchase has paid off and the pair hope to continue their adventure all the way to Panama.
|
|
Order Your OSBA Publications Now!
Needing to buy some publications? Visit the OSBA website at www.osba.on.ca and click on the "STORE" tab from the home page to order the following publications. Or click on the links below and go directly to each order form:
Once you have completed the necessary order form, scan/email it to info@osba.on.ca or fax to 416-695-9977.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
