https://www.americancityandcounty.com/wp-content/themes/acc_child/assets/images/logo/footer-logo.png
  • Home
  • Co-op Solutions
  • Hybrid Work
  • Commentaries
  • News
  • In-Depth
  • Multimedia
    • Back
    • Podcast
  • Resources & Events
    • Back
    • Resources
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
    • IWCE 2022
    • How to Contribute
    • Municipal Cost Index – Archive
    • Equipment Watch Page
    • American City & County Awards
  • About Us
    • Back
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Privacy Statement
    • Terms of Service
American City and County
  • NEWSLETTER
  • Home
  • Co-op Solutions
  • Hybrid Work
  • Commentaries
  • News
  • In-Depth
  • Multimedia
    • Back
    • Podcasts
  • Resources/Events
    • Back
    • Webinars
    • White Papers/eBooks
    • IWCE 2022
    • How to Contribute
    • American City & County Awards
    • Municipal Cost Index
    • Equipment Watch Page
  • About Us
    • Back
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Cookie Policy
    • Privacy Stament
    • Terms of Service
  • newsletter
  • Administration
  • Economy & Finance
  • Procurement
  • Public Safety
  • Public Works & Utilities
  • Smart Cities & Technology
  • Magazine
acc.com


Montana town gets an ‘A’ for bus maintenance

Montana town gets an ‘A’ for bus maintenance

Despite sitting in the center of Montana, where temperatures fall below freezing almost half the year, the city of Lewistown has not had a school bus
  • Written by American City & County Administrator
  • 1st May 1995

Despite sitting in the center of Montana, where temperatures fall below freezing almost half the year, the city of Lewistown has not had a school bus breakdown in the past four years, thanks to a comprehensive maintenance program.

Steve Klippenes, Lewistown’s transportation director, says his fleet of 16 buses transports more than 400 children 200,000 miles in an average school year over gravel mountain roads and often in extremely cold temperatures.

Klippenes says the key elements to his program are daily vehicle inspections, a computerized fleet analysis system, regular oil changes using premium quality lubricants and a comprehensive summer maintenance check.

“A breakdown on a rural road with 80 young passengers in sub-zero temperatures is to be avoided at all costs,” Klippenes says. “In Lewistown, we’ve avoided it.”

Lewistown’s buses consistently receive passing grades from the Montana Highway Patrol during semiannual inspections. If a bus does not pass inspection, it carries an “out of service” sticker until it has been repaired, reinspected and approved.

During the 1993-94 school year, 165 of 1,984 Montana school buses were placed on the out-of-service list. In the past five years, the Lewistown fleet has not had a single bus declared out of service.

The maintenance program also saves on the bottom line. Any bus that fails to meet the state’s minimum standards will not qualify for mileage reimbursement until the defect is corrected.

“By paying close attention to bus maintenance year-round, we can avoid many costly repairs,” Klippenes says, adding he has never gone over his300,000-plus annual budget.

Klippenes says he and his mechanic, along with 18 drivers, all play important roles in the program’s effectiveness – daily bus inspections by both drivers and mechanics are the cornerstone.

“The majority of bus breakdowns could be prevented if drivers conducted pre-trip vehicle inspections,” he says.

Each day, Klippenes’ drivers complete a pre-trip inspection that includes checking brakes, steering mechanics, horn, tires and all signals. The mechanic checks oil, water and other fluid levels. All results of the inspection are noted and given to the office for recording. If there are any problems, the driver will be aware of them before getting out on the road and risking a breakdown.

“Daily inspections will help the crew detect weak spots in the equipment before a breakdown,” says Head Mechanic Mark Prines. “This means our vehicles have a better chance of holding up when they are put to the test in the extreme cold or heat – conditions under which breakdowns can least be afforded.”

Klippenes keeps track of all daily inspection information with a computerized fleet maintenance system. The system tracks vehicles, drivers, mileage, repairs, parts inventory, scheduled preventive maintenance and unscheduled work. “The program allows us to track what maintenance work we’ve done and gives us updates as to what work we need to do,” he says. “With the computer system, we can anticipate problems and plan scheduled downtime for repairs.”

In winter, all buses are stored in a 10,000-sq.-ft. bus barn, which also is a maintenance shop. A gas heater keeps buses warm; pre-heating engines is not usually necessary. Antifreeze and blended gasoline are other winter precautions.

Regular oil changes with Phillips 66 multiviscosity oils are an essential part of the maintenance program because of the severe conditions. “The oils are engineered to exhibit different rates of flow at radically different temperatures,” Prines says.

Tags:

Most Recent


  • Supreme Court ruling on EPA greenhouse gas regulation will impact cities
    On Thursday, the U.S. Supreme Court handcuffed the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)’s regulation power by ruling that the federal government cannot use the 1970 Clean Air Act to restrict greenhouse gas emissions from power plants. By a 6-3 decision, the decision is notable for city and county administrators because greenhouse gas emissions aren’t contained within […]
  • sustainability
    Sustainability initiatives take center stage in Florida county
    Palm Beach County, Fla. (2022 estimated population: 1,538,450), is the second largest county in Florida by land area and the third largest by population. County leaders have been implementing resiliency and sustainability initiatives for more than a decade, says Melissa McKinlay, commissioner of Palm Beach County District 6. “However, a few years ago, the Board […]
  • July fourth
    10 best cities for July Fourth celebrations
    Happy 247th birthday, America! Across the country, people will be gathering for parades, picnics and, of course, fireworks. According to WalletHub’s 4th of July facts, 47.9 million people will travel 50+ miles from home for the holiday weekend. They will spend $7.7 billion on food, and eat 150 million hot dogs, maybe trying to beat […]
  • The Missing Link in Cloud Security
    Why End-of-Life Destruction is Critical to a Successful Cloud Security Policy Recently, there has been a hyper-focus on cloud security — and with good reason. According to a report by McAfee, cloud services are now a regular component of IT operations, utilized by more than 90% of organizations globally. In fact, 80% of all IT […]

Leave a comment Cancel reply

-or-

Log in with your American City and County account

Alternatively, post a comment by completing the form below:

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related Content

  • NLC releases State of Cities 2021 report
  • How governments can keep employees safe as they return to work
  • Lessons from your friendly neighborhood public service employees
  • North Texas alliance partners with Marketplace.city on smart government solutions

White papers


How to Assemble a Rockstar Website Redesign Steering Committee

7th June 2022

Hand Hygiene: Compliance Matters

23rd May 2022

What it Takes to Build a Winning Esports Program

23rd May 2022
view all

Events


PODCAST


Young Leaders Episode 4 – Cyril Jefferson – City Councilman, High Point, North Carolina

13th October 2020

Young Leaders Episode 3 – Shannon Hardin – City Council President, Columbus, Ohio

27th July 2020

Young Leaders Episode 2 – Christian Williams – Development Services Planner, Goodyear, Ariz.

1st July 2020
view all

Twitter


AmerCityCounty

Supreme Court ruling on EPA greenhouse gas regulation will impact cities dlvr.it/STBwkw

1st July 2022
AmerCityCounty

Sustainability initiatives take center stage in Florida county dlvr.it/STBvwN

1st July 2022
AmerCityCounty

10 best cities for July Fourth celebrations dlvr.it/STBfHt

1st July 2022
AmerCityCounty

The Missing Link in Cloud Security dlvr.it/STBXNL

1st July 2022
AmerCityCounty

Improving Productivity with Employee Engagement | Aug. 4, 2022 at 2 PM ET dlvr.it/STBCD5

1st July 2022
AmerCityCounty

We want to hear from you! Please take this brief survey and let us know how your organization is managing your budg… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

30th June 2022
AmerCityCounty

Report: Reforming emergency dispatch won’t be easy, but it’s necessary dlvr.it/ST7kQ5

30th June 2022
AmerCityCounty

Three U.S. cities to adopt Bloomberg Philanthropies Mayors Challenge-winning project to combat climate change dlvr.it/ST4bjk

29th June 2022

Newsletters

Sign up for American City & County’s newsletters to receive regular news and information updates about local governments.

Resale Insights Dashboard

The Resale Insights Dashboard provides model-level data for the entire used equipment market to help you save time and money.

Municipal Cost Index

Updated monthly since 1978, our exclusive Municipal Cost Index shows the effects of inflation on the cost of providing municipal services

Media Kit and Advertising

Want to reach our digital audience? Learn more here.

DISCOVER MORE FROM INFORMA TECH

  • IWCE’s Urgent Communications
  • IWCE Expo

WORKING WITH US

  • About Us
  • Contact Us

FOLLOW American City and County ON SOCIAL

  • Privacy
  • CCPA: “Do Not Sell My Data”
  • Cookies Policy
  • Terms
Copyright © 2022 Informa PLC. Informa PLC is registered in England and Wales with company number 8860726 whose registered and Head office is 5 Howick Place, London, SW1P 1WG.
This website uses cookies, including third party ones, to allow for analysis of how people use our website in order to improve your experience and our services. By continuing to use our website, you agree to the use of such cookies. Click here for more information on our Cookie Policy and Privacy Policy.
X