USD 408 first Kansas district to get vision bus years ago
Kansas Truck Equipment Company president Maurice Linnens, Wichita, said Marion-Florence USD 408 was the first school district in Kansas to take delivery of the new Blue Bird Vision bus, last week.
The all-new 44-passenger, diesel-powered bus exemplifies Blue Bird's leadership and commitment to school bus safety, Linnens said. It features sight lines that give drivers 20 inches of additional visibility.
Linnens is a native of Cedar Point. His parents were the late Ralph Linnens, and Bertha Linnens, who now lives at Newton.
This provides drivers with the greatest frontal field of vision available in a conventional school bus on the market today. Advanced driver safety benefits include the Blue Bird Safety View lens that permits the driver "direct vision" to the loading area.
Dick Maggard, USD 408 director of transportation, said the improvements make for less of a blind spot in front for the bus driver.
The Vision bus addresses head-on an issue in school bus transportation — the vulnerability to accidents during loading and unloading, Linnens said.
The Blue Bird Body Company of Fort Valley, Ga., unveiled the new Vision prototype bus at the National Association of Pupil Transportation convention in Memphis, Tenn., last November.
Kansas Truck Equipment Company is the exclusive Kansas dealer for Blue Bird school buses.
The new bus also has tinted windows to help all inside stay cooler during hot weather, Joe Mish, mechanic/bus driver for USD 408, said Tuesday.
The bus will serve as a "spare" for now, as well as an activity bus, Maggard said.
