On the Bus

Transportation Planning Service

FEH BOCES's new Transportation Planning Service provides school districts with resources to support your district's administrative/transportation leaders as they supervise the safe transport of your students. This program can be tailored to meet the needs of pupil transportation operations with district or contracted employees.

Want to sign up? Have questions? Contact us at OnTheBus@fehb.org

Base service

The base service consists of:

  • Our experts at your service, with a hotline for questions, answers, and safety suggestions.

  • A weekly email blast with transportation-related news and reminders.

  • A monthly virtual meeting centered on various state aid and transportation topics (with occasional guest speakers).

  • A quarterly electronic newsletter.

  • Annual transportation training for supervisors, directors, and leaders.

  • Statewide meetings at selected locations during the year.

  • Other offerings customized to meet your individual challenges and can include compliance, communication skills, career development, and congruency.

  • Assistance with NYSED’s Paperless Pupil Transportation System. Designed to reduce paper use, the Pupil Transportation System gives district transportation staff an efficient way to:

  • Submit contracts for approval.

  • Request approval for transportation aided and leased items.

  • Submit NYSED compliance documentation.

The team

Paul Overbaugh - Seasoned transport professional with over 30 years of hands-on experience and a track record of positive collaboration with contractors, districts, associations, and policy makers.

  • State Director of Pupil Transportation Services, NYS Education Department

  • NYS Master Instructor, NYS

  • Highway Safety Program Representative, Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee Department of Motor Vehicles

  • Curriculum Development Specialist, Pupil Transportation Safety Institute

  • Transportation Supervisor, Dispatcher and School Bus Driver, multiple districts

Gregg Diefenbach - More than three decades of financial experience working with NYS public school districts.

  • Deputy Director of Administrative and Management Services, Capital Region BOCES

  • Associate in the Educational Management Services Division at NYSED

  • Public education: school business administrator, internal auditor, state aid planner

  • Private sector: international banking, stock brokerage

  • NYS Certified School Business Administrator

Pricing

Base fee based on tiered enrollment:

  • 0 to 2,000 students - $5,900 per year

  • 2,000 to 5,000 - $9,900 per year

  • 5,000 to Big Five - $13,900 per year

  • Big Five - $17,900 per year

Add-on options

For base service customers: Per diem of $900 or $175 per hour

For non-customers: Per diem of $1,100 or $425 per hour

Leadership- On-site monitoring and mentoring of your transportation management team. Will provide recommendations to assist your operation as well as suggestions to begin growing tomorrow’s leaders today.

Compliance- Tailored to the needs of your district. Can include compliance checks and rechecks, reviews of drivers and other staff.

Contract- Train your team to complete and submit transportation contracts, create RFP or RFBs, and review your contracts to maximize transportation aid and avoid common contract errors.

Student Management- Review your student management policies and procedure, provide suggestions to safely transport children and overcome challenges with consistency and confidence.

State Aid

Districts will receive BOCES aid for their membership in the service. Transportation aid will be available for any add-on services.