THE TIME IS NOW
There has never been a better time to improve student school bus safety in Ohio.
OHIO SCHOOL BUS SAFETY GRANT PROGRAM
Every year, children lose their life in school bus related accidents, and the state of Ohio is looking to combat the issue head on. The Ohio Department of Education and Workforce has announced $10 million in funding to improve school bus safety statewide. There has never been a better time to improve the safety of your fleet!
Who Qualifies?
- Any type of school that owns its own fleet
- Priority will be given to newer buses (under 5 years old)
Timing
- Deadline to apply is Nov. 14th, 2025
- Installation by June 30th, 2027
Eligible Products
- Fully illuminated stop arms located at the front and rear of a school bus
- Fully illuminated school bus signs
- See full list of other eligible products ►
- External school bus cameras
- Crossing arms
- Lane departure warning systems
- Electronic stability control
- Lighted crossover mirrors
- Colorado rack test-approved bus frames
- Collision avoidance systems
- All light-emitting diode (LED) lights
- Ground wash lights
- Reflective chevron
- Occupant restraining devices that conform to the school bus seat belt requirements of 49 C.F.R. 571
- Silent panic alert technology that connects the school bus to a public safety answering point to allow immediate contact with emergency services
- Broadband push-to-talk capabilities, integrated with traditional land mobile radio, if necessary, for direct interoperability with public safety and other emergency service broadband applications
For more information on the Ohio Grant, click here.
For a guide on how to include First Light products in your application, click here.
FIRST LIGHT SAFETY PRODUCTS
Take a proactive approach to student safety with First Light. The Fully Illuminated Stop Arm™ and Illuminated School Bus Sign™ have been validated by Ohio School Bus Safety Working Group and help save lives. First Light has proven that with higher visibility and clear messaging we can reduce passing violations and proactively improve student safety.
Why First Light Safety Products?
- Create a bigger impact faster, with easy retrofitting on existing fleets
- Proven to reduce violations, keeping students safe where they are most at risk
- Extend the value of funding to more buses and ultimately, more students
STOP ILLEGAL PASSING IN OHIO
The most proactive way to improve safety in school bus transportation is to stop illegal passings from happening.
It’s estimated, over 900,000 illegal school bus passings take place in Ohio each school year. These are all instances where a child boarding or deboarding the school bus is at risk. Implementing First Light Safety Products is the most effective solution to proactively decrease violations and keep children safe, where they are most at risk, during their daily commute to and from school.
FIRST LIGHT’S IMPACT ON SCHOOLS IN OHIO
Over 2,000 school districts across the country trust First Light’s illuminated technology to create safer roads for their students. School districts in Ohio have experienced firsthand the positive impact that First Light products can have. By reducing illegal passing the Fully Illuminated Stop Arm™ and Illuminated School Bus Sign™ save lives.
OVERALL DECREASE
(ALL ROADS, WEATHER,
DAY OR NIGHT)
REDUCTION ON
TWO-LANE ROADS, ALL
TIMES OF DAY
REDUCTION IN
DARKNESS, DUSK,
AND DAWN
DON’T JUST TAKE OUR WORD FOR IT
Hilliard City Schools has experienced a notable improvement in student transportation safety through the implementation of First Light safety products. Since equipping a portion of our fleet with First Light’s high-visibility stop arm signs, we’ve observed...
Angelo Caputo
Director of Transportation
