KSHB 41 Traffic anchor/reporter Daniela Leon covers all sorts of transportation topics across Kansas City. Have a story idea to share or a question about something in your neighborhood? Send Daniela a news tip.
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Kansas City Public Schools students will be arriving for the first day of school in new buses after the district entered a multi-million contract with California-based transportation provider Zum.
Over the summer, Zum was focused on hiring and training new bus drivers, including Christopher Hamilton, in an effort to revolutionize KCPS student transportation.
"I treat everybody with dignity, respect, and the only thing that matters to me is getting the kids to school safe and getting them home safe; that's all that matters," Hamilton said.
Like other districts, KCPS has dealt with bus driver shortages, which caused students to be late for class and impacted certain routes.
Earlier this summer, Zum told KSHB they were planning to hire 150 people. As of now, the company said it has enough drivers for the entire school district.
Each driver is offered training, at least 25 hours a week, full-time benefits and wages ranging from $24-$30 an hour.
"We are in the community and know the issues they’ve had, and we understand there’s tremendous responsibility and pressure to succeed ... we welcome that," said Zum General Manager Jim Mitchell.
In an effort to revolutionize student transportation, Zum buses are equipped with enhanced safety features like cameras, belts and cutting-edge technology that gives parents real-time updates on their student’s location and a live bus map.
But for Hamilton, as a bus driver with seven years under his belt, the best feature is the one that can’t be seen but is immediately felt.
"They have all the bells and whistles, and I thank God I don’t need a piece of paper anymore, everything is on the tablet," he said. “I used to come to work dry and leave soaking wet because we didn't have any air conditioning. I thank God that they came with air conditioning; that is a game changer.”
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