Westerville school bus driver Alan Hunt shows first time riders how the wheelchair lift works.
More than 200 students in the Westerville City School District who will be riding a school bus for the first time this fall got a “sneak peek” at how things work during the annual First Time Riders open house, which was held at Whittier Elementary School on August 2.
At the event, sponsored by the district’s Transportation Department, pupils got the opportunity to explore school buses up close, learn about safety, take a ride with their parents, participate in hands-on mechanical activities, and meet Buster the Bus, a talking, miniature remote-controlled school bus.
Throughout the exhibit, which also featured a clown making balloon hats and animals, “fun facts” were posted about school transportation services. Attendees learned that:
- Westerville Transportation Services has been recognized as a “Top 40 Government Green Fleet Award Winner.”
- An empty school bus weighs approximately 17,000 lbs, which is the equivalent of two full grown elephants.
- A football field is approximately the same length as nine school buses placed end to end.
- A school bus holds 21 quarts of oil, 6 gallons of antifreeze and 100 gallons of fuel.
- The average life cycle of a Westerville City School bus is 15 years.
- The basic design of a school bus has not changed since 1977.
- The color of school buses, known as “National School Bus Glossy Yellow,” has not changed since 1939.
- A school bus averages eight miles per gallon.