Dubai Schools Install Astrata Group Bus Tracking Technology

• By Dian Schaffhauser
• 10/28/08

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As part of student safety programs, Al Mawakeb School and the International School of Arts & Sciences in Dubai, UAE, have been recipients of a contract awarded by Academia Management Solutions International (AMSI) to Astrata Group to track and monitor buses at the schools.

Astrata's tracking and monitoring system has been installed in about 100 school buses. The interactive solution allows parents to track their children's travel in a specific school bus, enabling them to access data about the whereabouts of the student via a password-protected Web site. The service provides minute-by-minute information about the transportation of children to and from school and the exact time they arrived to their destination.

The company also reported that the system may be upgraded with radio frequency ID (RFID) reader/tags to monitor boarding students and the location of pupils while in school itself.

The expense of the tracking system was added to school fees. According to Astrata, 700 paying parents are funding this system.

An SMS service can also alert parents in advance of an approaching bus at designated pick-up points so students can be met.

The bus driver's driving performance--speeding, harsh-breaking, and acceleration--can also be monitored.

Astrata Group creates location-based IT services and programs that combine GPS positioning, wireless communications (satellite or terrestrial), and geographical information technology to allow users to monitor, trace, and control the movement and status of machinery, vehicles, personnel, and other assets.