Quality education involves more than just providing valuable lessons to students. Providing exceptional facilities is also a part of quality education. One such facility that schools must take care of is transportation. As parents want to offer the best education to their kids, they go beyond their comforts. Gone are the days when parents used to look for a school nearby their residence. Now, they want to get their children admitted to the best schools. As a result, schools have also started paying attention to other facilities, and among them is the commute of their students and teachers. Most schools offer pick and drop facilities to students and teachers through their fleet of buses. However, parents may get concerned about their child's safety until they get back to their homes. Technology can play its part in tackling such issues. It can reduce the risk and ensure that children reach school safely.
Student safety is a major concern for most educational institutions, and that’s why they have adopted a transport management system to track the live location of buses. The adoption of this system also increases parents’ confidence in the school system. Let us understand what a transport management system is and how it can benefit institutes, parents, and students.
What is a transport management system?
A transport management system is software to manage the bus fleets. Admins of any educational institution can use this software to ensure the safety of their students. Moreover, the system also provides various reports regarding the management of buses and other transportation systems. This system is integrated with the institute ERP, thus providing admins an end-to-end solution. It captures various information, including vehicle numbers and driver allocation to the vehicle daily. Also, many vendors integrate payment modules into the system to provide ease to parents. Parents can pay the bus fees using this management system. School management can also revise the fees and inform parents about the same without any delays.
Advantages of a transport management system
A transport management system is gaining popularity among educational institutions because of the benefits it offers. Here are a few reasons that school admins can consider before using this software.
Safety
What would it be like when parents can track the bus route of their children? They can get peace of mind knowing that their child is on the right path. As the system is equipped with a GPS tracking system, parents can know the real-time location of their child. With the live location, parents can understand when the bus will come to pick up their child and when they can expect a drop-off. It can help parents manage their time more efficiently. A transport management system allows parents and school authorities to monitor the entire bus ride. The system also sends notifications to parents in case of changes in the bus route.
Efficiency
School management can use the transport management system to plan driver schedules. Moreover, the system also keeps a record of the driver’s licenses, expiration dates, profiles, and schedules. It improves parents’ trust in the organization and gives them information on who is driving their child’s bus. Moreover, the system is also beneficial for schools as they can move around driver schedules in case of any changes. For example, if a particular driver is unavailable on a particular day, the school management can make the necessary changes to the driver's schedule. It will help them prevent delays in bus timings and keep the routine running smoothly.
Better administration
One of the issues with the traditional bus management system is that admins may not make the changes in the bus routes. However, bus routes may change depending on the changes in demand. At the start of a new year, new students are added to every bus route. As a result, the route might get tweaked. With a transport management system, schools can make these changes without any hassles. When using a management system, the school can add or delete the routes according to the demand. The system accommodates these changes and shows the best routes; thus reducing the chances of human error and making the bus systems more efficient.
Improved maintenance
Transport management systems are also equipped with systems providing alerts and notifications. For example, many software sends maintenance schedule reminders to stakeholders when the vehicle needs maintenance work. Moreover, school administrators can also set reminders for insurance policy and driver’s license renewal.
Go green
One of the significant advantages of using an automated vehicle management system is that it helps educational institutions save paper and adopt a more eco-friendly approach. As a result, schools can reduce the paperwork and wastage of finite resources. Now, students do not need to carry their bus passes when boarding a bus.
Educational institutions can achieve the above-mentioned benefits and a lot more by adopting a transport management system. However, they must know what features are crucial before deciding on a vehicle management system. Let us look further to understand what are the features that school admins should consider before selecting a transport management system.
Features of a transport management system for educational institutes
The main features of a transport management system are:
Transport fee collection system
The bus management system is integrated with the institute ERP and is the perfect companion for payroll processing for drivers. Moreover, parents can also deposit the bus fees through this system. The software makes the transport fee collection process easy. Also, additions and deductions like specific taxation are taken care of by this system.
Alerts to parents
Parents can assure their child’s safety with the transport management system. With the help of this system, they can track the progress and route of the vehicle. The system works on various devices and is mobile-friendly. As a result, parents can keep an eye on their children easily. The system also sends notifications and reminders in case of any emergencies.
Reports
A transport management system also works as a record-keeping companion for schools and other educational institutions. It records various details like vehicle insurance, bus identification details, and routes. Moreover, the system generates detailed reports for various stakeholders that use the transportation facilities offered by the institute.
Transport attendance management
A transport management system is most likely to be energy and time efficient for institutes as it can reduce human error in the process. Features like scheduling vehicles, adding and eliminating routes, assigning specific routes to particular students, etc. can be managed more efficiently with the automated system.
A transport management system can easily optimize the entire transportation system without creating much ruckus. It manages the vehicle route, keeps parents updated about their child’s location, and manages the driver’s profile through a single platform. Owing to these benefits, every educational institute must invest in a transport management system.
Teachmint offers the best-in-class education ERP solutions to educational institutes. Do check it out to provide a hassle-free experience to your stakeholders and increase your student enrolment percentage. With our advanced learning management system, you can improve the teaching-learning experience.
Suggested Read: Great Tips and Insights for a School Principal
