School Transportation Operations Program (Transfinder)

Maine Department of Education provides free school bus routing and transportation management system software through the School Transportation Operations Program.  The purpose of the Program is to provide a resource for school administrative units to conserve the comfort, safety, and welfare of students conveyed by optimizing local transportation operations. 

This free School Transportation Operations Program is available to public schools, including public charter schools, and private schools approved for the receipt of public funds (“private schools”).  This page offers an overview of the software system, steps to get started, training options, and case studies.  

Overview

Transfinder is your partner in school transportation management, district-wide communications, GPS integration, fleet maintenance, and outreach to parents and the community. The comprehensive suite of products, solutions, and services — from the most flexible and powerful bus routing software system in the market to the comprehensive suite of web-based communication solutions and services —  enables districts and staff to:

  • Provide safe and reliable student transportation;
  • Allocate and manage your transportation assets to optimal performance;
  • Adjust to day-to-day schedule, school, or route changes;
  • Ensure a smooth transition to meet the challenges of regionalization and/or redistricting;
  • Communicate and interact in real time with district-wide personnel, teachers, parents and the community; and
  • Meet budgetary challenges without reducing the quality of your services.

Getting Started

  1. Watch the three minute introductory video on the Transfinder homepage at www.transfinder.com.
  2. Schedule a conference call by sending an email to Transfinder Maine Account Executive Angela Vitti at avitti@transfinder.com and copy Maine DOE's Transportation and Facilities Administrator Cheryl Brackett at cheryl.brackett@maine.gov.
  3. Schedule technical set-up by sending an email to Angela Vitti. Technical set-up takes two to three weeks. The school district transportation director and information technology team will need to work with Transfinder to complete the technical set-up.
  4. Plan and complete your training.
  5. Routfinder Plus upgrade training has is in process.  Contact Angela Vitti at avitti@transfinder.com to schedule training.

Training Options

  • Online training is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at no cost. For information on online training, contact Transfinder Maine Account Executive Angela Vitti at avitti@transfinder.com.
  • Classroom training is available for three days every June at no cost. Pre-registration is required. Contact Transfinder Maine Account Executive Angela Vitti at avitti@transfinder.com. Classroom training is offered annually during the Maine State School Transportation Safety Conference that occurs in Maine. The training is free and there is a reasonable registration fee to attend the state conference.
  • Intensive training is available at the annual Transfinder National Client Summit for three days each May. Attendees from across the U.S. meet at the Transfinder corporate office in New York or Texas to learn from Transfinder experts and work collaboratively. The registration fee covers hotel costs and food with a small fee for training. Read about the summit here. Register by contacting Transfinder Maine Account Executive Angela Vitti at avitti@transfinder.com.
  • Certification training is available. Contact Transfinder Maine Account Executive Angela Vitti at avitti@transfinder.com.

Case Studies

  • AOS 93 conducted a study to identify ways to improve overall efficiency of transportation.
  • Falmouth Public Schools saves countless hours by utilizing transfinder solutions for the district.
  • Madawaska uses system for data driven decision making, organization,efficiency, and security awareness
  • SAD 27 new user has success managing student counts and number of riders on each bus route
  • MSAD 59 reduces transportation costs with routing software and realizes educational benefits.
  • RSU 06 works with the school board to consolidate bus runs which leads to significant annual savings.
  • RSU 09 long time district users new staff learns the system to reduce error and manage a safe efficient transportation office
  • RSU 24 implemented Servicefinder vehicle maintenance module to record work orders and sends notifications when routine maintenance is due.
  • RSU 35 improved efficiency on the road, better reporting and accountability, and easily monitors day to day operations from one dashboard.
  • RSU 44 uses suite of Transfinder modules to optimize operations.
  • RSU 54/MSAD 54 taps into Transfinder resources to improve transportation operations.
  • RSU 60 plans to start using Tranfinder software.
  • RSU 61 improved time management and made use of auditing resources to refine operations.
  • RSU 74 makes use of software modules for field trip management and parent communication.
  • South Portland makes high use of system modules to implement preventative maintenance, communicate with parents, coordinate sports trips, adapt to change in school start time, and more.

For more technical requirements and troubleshooting contact Angela Vitti at avitti@transfinder.com.