The Pattonville School District earned the Missouri State Highway Patrol’s Total Fleet Excellence Award. The transportation department team obtained a first-round approval score of 96% during the annual inspection of its buses and the district’s score was 100% at the conclusion of the inspection. The two buses that had minor issues, which were not mechanical, were repaired quickly, reinspected and approved. 

Things that worked for the transportation department to exceed the 90% inspection score to qualify for the award were:

• Standardized preventative bus inspection checklist followed by mechanics.
• Mechanics inspecting buses immediately before the bus entered the staging lineup.
• Well-trained driver inspection team.
• Retaining one mechanic at the inspection line for inspector questioning and miscellaneous requests.

In order to receive the Total Fleet Excellence Award, the first-time approval score must be 90% or higher. Pattonville last received the award in 2020 and 2021. In 2022 and 2023, the district did not receive the Total Fleet award, but did earn a perfect score at the conclusion of the inspections.