Q&A: What a school bus fleet taught us about diesel

What do you think managing a school bus fleet and a trucking fleet have in common from an operations perspective?

Managing a school bus fleet and a commercial trucking fleet involves many of the same operational challenges. Both require careful route planning, preventive maintenance, fuel management, driver accountability and an unwavering commitment to safety.

At Rossville Consolidated School District, we serve a rural community where transportation routes cover long distances and efficiency matters most. Unlike commercial trucking, our primary responsibility is transporting students safely and on time, but the underlying business principles remain remarkably similar. Every unnecessary mile, extended idle period or inefficient route adds to operational costs. As a small school district, we must be responsible stewards of taxpayer dollars while maintaining dependable transportation services. Technology and data-driven decision-making let us evaluate our operations more effectively, identify opportunities for improvement and ensure we use our resources wisely.

When you looked at telematics data for your fleet, what inefficiencies did the data reveal?

When I first examined the telematics data for Rossville Consolidated School District, I quickly realized that we had an opportunity to eliminate an entire bus route. For a small, rural school district operating only 10 routes, eliminating one represents a substantial 10% reduction in our daily transportation routes. With the increasing difficulty of recruiting and retaining qualified school bus drivers, combined with the significant costs associated with operating and maintaining a school bus, the decision was a no-brainer.

The data allowed us to examine our existing routes, identify inefficiencies and determine how we could transport students more effectively without compromising safety or service. This experience reinforced an important lesson: sometimes the greatest operational improvements are right in front of us, but we need accurate data to recognize them. For Rossville, eliminating one route represented a significant opportunity for long-term operational savings.

By making route adjustments based on the data, have you saved on diesel expenses?

Reducing unnecessary transportation expenses is a key part of responsible financial management. Route efficiency directly influences fuel consumption, vehicle wear, maintenance requirements and overall operating costs. In a rural district, even modest reductions in daily mileage can produce meaningful savings when multiplied across approximately 180 instructional days.

However, I believe it is important to distinguish projected savings from actual documented reductions in expenditures. Several factors influence fuel costs, including diesel prices, miles traveled and vehicle performance. Our objective is to use reliable operational data to make informed routing decisions and evaluate their financial impact over time, rather than assuming every adjustment produces savings.

Have you had to provide drivers any specific training to help maximize fuel efficiency and reduce idling?

We use Zonar telematics to monitor bus idling and promote driver accountability. I receive an alert whenever a bus idles for more than eight minutes, allowing me to identify situations that may warrant further attention. Legitimate reasons for extended idling exist. If it is the middle of an Indiana winter and a driver needs to defrost the windshield to ensure safe operation, that is understandable. However, if it is sunny and 70 degrees, that is an entirely different situation.

Technology allows us to have informed conversations with drivers about responsible vehicle operation rather than relying on assumptions. Our goal is not to micromanage drivers but to establish reasonable expectations and hold everyone accountable. Reducing unnecessary idling saves fuel, reduces engine wear and demonstrates responsible stewardship of taxpayer dollars without compromising student safety.

For fleets in other industries like heavy-duty trucking, how do you think telematics can help right now when diesel prices are elevated?

When diesel prices increase, transportation operators have limited control over the price they pay per gallon, but they can influence how efficiently that fuel is used. Whether operating school buses in rural Indiana or managing commercial trucks across multiple states, fleet managers need accurate information about vehicle utilization, unnecessary idling, route efficiency and maintenance requirements. Telematics can help identify avoidable expenses that might otherwise go unnoticed.

For smaller trucking companies operating on narrow profit margins, incremental improvements can make a significant difference. At Rossville Consolidated School District, we recognize that transportation expenditures compete with other important educational priorities. The same principle applies to private businesses: dollars saved through operational efficiency can be redirected toward essential organizational needs. Data is most valuable when it leads to practical decisions that improve performance without compromising safety.

What's one key lesson from your work in school bus routing that you think owners of small business trucking companies can learn from?

The most important lesson is simple: Never assume that the way you have always operated is the most efficient way to operate today. At Rossville Consolidated School District, we must continually balance student safety, transportation reliability, operational efficiency and responsible use of taxpayer resources. Rural transportation presents unique challenges because distances are significant and opportunities to consolidate routes may be limited. Nevertheless, reviewing actual operating information can reveal opportunities that are not immediately apparent.

Small trucking businesses face similar challenges, particularly when staffing and financial resources are limited. My advice is to start with the information already available, identify measurable inefficiencies and make thoughtful adjustments rather than trying to change everything at once. Most importantly, involve the people who operate the vehicles every day. Drivers often understand practical challenges that numbers alone cannot explain. Successful fleet management requires combining reliable data with sound professional judgment.