School bus drivers compete in annual safety competition in Hays County
School bus drivers compete in annual safety competition
Elite school bus drivers from across North America are gathered in Hays County, Texas, to compete in a national skills competition emphasizing safety, set against the backdrop of a community still impacted by a tragic bus crash earlier this year.
HAYS COUNTY, Texas - Rolling strong for more than half a century. Bus drivers from around the country are traveling to Hays County to put their skills to the test today.
The Hays County CISD transportation facility was transformed into the ultimate bus driving course over the weekend.
The two-day program put on by the National School Transportation Association (NSTA) provides an opportunity for drivers to showcase their knowledge and skills through different safety tests and obstacles.
What they're saying:
Executive director of the NSTA, Curt Macysyn, describes just how in death the driving course is.
"They go through the course, there are a number of different events that you see. Backup stall, loading, unloading," said Macysyn.
"Drivers qualify for this event by winning a state, local, or regional competition. And that's throughout all 50 states and a couple of provinces in Canada. So when they win that, they're eligible to come here to Hays and compete, and we find out who the best of the best is."
Ryan Dunn was one of 50 plus contestants who punched their tickets to compete.
"It's also one of the best feelings being able to drive that big vehicle and also just being able to watch them grow up. Again, I've been doing this for 16 years. I've had different students over those years, but being able to be a part of their lives means a lot," said Dunn.
The Ohio native has been training for this since February.
"This separates the men from the boys. I mean, this is totally, it's a lot harder to, it's a lot easier to mess up on this than it is with our regional state. The point values are a lot different. There's little room for error."
The backstory:
Back in March 2024, a Hays CISD school bus was returning from a field trip along State Highway 21, when a concrete truck, driven by 42-year-old Jerry Hernandez, crossed the double yellow line and slammed into the bus.
It was carrying 44 preschoolers and 11 adults as two lives were lost.
Last week, Hernandez accepted a plea deal.
The day still sits heavy in the community.
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Dig deeper:
Cassandra Behr is the transportation director at Hays CISD.
She says after the crash there was a big push to improve safety on the school buses.
"We all think that could have been me driving. What if that had been me there? So, it was really hard, and there are still days when it is difficult, when I drive to Bastrop and drive past the location," said Behr.
"We looked at what buses that were older than 2018 that we could retrofit. So, we took our 2016 and 2017 buses. We had 13 of them that we did last summer that we retrofitted with seat-belts. We ended up buying 30 other new buses."
Now, with every safety cone navigated, and every turn scored, this competition is about more than just winning.
It’s about protecting the next generation.
"Making sure that we get our kids to and from school. That's our next generation, and we need to get them to school to learn," said Behr.
What's next:
Hays CISD says they are always looking to recruit bus drivers.
FOX 7 has that information on our website.
The Source: Information in this article was provided by the National School Transportation Association. Additional information was provided by Hays CISD.