New York City introduced a new app on Friday, January 19th, designed to enhance the safety of students commuting to and from school.
According to New York City Public Schools, the newly released app offers live tracking capabilities for yellow school buses.
With the integration of over 75% of public school buses into the app’s system, parents and guardians can now view the precise location of their child’s bus as it progresses on its route.
Access to the app requires a New York City Public Schools account and the child’s student ID number.
Parents also have the option to request the addition of their child’s school to the app if the route is not currently available for tracking.
Highlighting the app’s significance, Mayor Eric Adams stated, “From the start, our administration has set a new standard for how government uses technology to serve hardworking families.
The mayor added, “New York families are busy all day long, and the NYC School Bus App will make their lives a little easier by helping them manage pick-ups and drop-offs right from their home computers or smartphones while giving them additional comfort as they follow the bus route’s their young children take on their way to and from school.”
The app is designed to enhance communication for the families of approximately 150,000 daily school bus riders and ensures accountability from school bus contractors for delivering quality service.
The urgency of the app is underscored by a City Council report, which noted an average school bus delay of 41 minutes at the beginning of the last academic year, primarily due to traffic.
Schools Chancellor David Banks expressed his enthusiasm for the app’s city-wide launch, remarking, “I’m thrilled to be launching this system for families across the city, and to provide peace of mind to parents as they send their babies off to school each day.”
