Dear DRES Families,
Students riding buses serviced by Zum Transportation will be issued Student Bus Cards beginning the afternoon of March 12th.
Student bus cards use the same contactless RFID technology found in metro transit passes, corporate access cards, and other commonly used ID cards. Tapping the bus card records only the student boarding or disembarking the vehicle. The Zum RFID bus cards are not GPS-enabled and cannot track or follow a student’s movements outside of getting on or off their bus.
No eligible student will be denied bus service if they lose or forget their card.
Parents/guardians will have access to their student’s ridership information via the Zum app, which many families already use for bus pickup/drop off information. The Zum app is available for free download on the Apple Store and Google Play. Additional details on downloading and using the Zum app are available online.
While the use of an identification card for student bus riders is not required, it does assist us in providing safe and efficient bus transportation. With student safety at the forefront of everything we do, the use of the student bus card will:
- Ensure students on the bus are quickly identified in an emergency situation
- Allow parents to track when students enter and exit a school bus
- Assist if a student is reported lost
- Identify if an unauthorized rider tries to board a school bus
In addition, the use of student bus cards will help HCPSS increase the efficiency of bus service. The information will assist with the optimization of school bus routes by providing accurate ridership and capacity data so that the school district can make adjustments to routes and service.
You can find more information about the Student Bus Cards here: