Bethel Park School District will introduce a new school bus tracking application for the 2026-27 school year, replacing the BusWhere app that has served the district since 2022.
The new app, BusBoss PARENTpatrol, works in conjunction with the district's existing BusBoss routing and scheduling software to give families real-time access to transportation information from their smartphones — similar to how Uber uses GPS technology to show riders the exact location of their driver, estimated arrival time and route progress.
Facilities and Operations Supervisor Dan Sloan said the transition has been years in the making.
"We have used BusBoss' routing and scheduling software for a very long time, so we are familiar with the company," Sloan said. "When they developed an app to go along with what we are already using, we felt comfortable making the switch."
The key improvement, Sloan said, is accuracy. Unlike the former system, which estimated bus locations using an older platform, PARENTpatrol equips drivers with a tablet throughout their route, giving parents a real-time and far more precise picture of where the bus is at any given moment on its route.
PARENTpatrol features include live bus location tracking, minute-to-minute updates with estimated arrival times, delay and route change notifications, stop countdowns and the ability to track multiple children from the same account. Parents can also communicate directly with the district about transportation concerns.
Sloan encourages families to arrive at bus stops at least 10 minutes early each day for safety. “The tracking technology is truly amazing,” said Sloan. “However, as we all know, technology doesn’t always work as intended, so it’s just a good practice to get to your child’s bus stop 10 minutes early every day, so you never miss your bus.”
Click here to get started:
- Search "BusBoss PARENTpatrol" in the App Store or Google Play and install the app
- Open the app and select "Create Login"
- Enter the email address registered with the school
- Create a password using the automated email sent to that address
The district encourages all families who rely on bus transportation to download and set up the app before the school year begins.