Zeeland students get bus swipe cards

ZEELAND, Mich. (WOOD) - Tiffany Meyer has three children in the same Zeeland elementary school this year. A few years ago, her oldest son had bit of trouble with the bus.

"He was supposed to ride bus 53 and he got on bus 35," she told 24 Hour News 8. "They tried to locate him just by using the radio and the bus drivers calling over the intercom."

He was located and was fine.

But now, there's a new system in place in Zeeland -- and school officials hope the sound is music to a parent's fears.

Students will swipe a high-tech card each time they get on a school bus.

"As they come on, they'll hear a beep so the bus driver knows they (swiped) their card," said Zeeland Public School's Dave Meeuwsen. "A different perspective. A little bit more technical modern-type of safety ideas."

Each Zeeland student will get a card and swipe it whenever they get on and off the bus. The district can keep track of the swipes and students, and each swipe brings an alert. Parents can sign up to get text messages or emails each time their child swipes their card.

A $50,000 grant paid for the technology in all the buses. Parents need to pay to get a GPS feature and the text alerts -- $7 for the first child, $4 for each additional child.

But swiping the card will not tell the driver if the student gets on the wrong bus, as Tiffany Meyer's son did. But it will help find a student when they get lost.

Middle- and high schoolers will soon get their cards. Elementary students get theirs on the first day of school.

"It does take some of the worry out," Meyer said. "You can find out where your kid is on their bus route all the time. It's come a long way."