July 12, 2018
By: Dwayne Page
Inspectors of the Tennessee Highway Patrol visited the DeKalb County School Bus Garage Monday to conduct an unannounced spot check of buses in the fleet.
Ten percent of the system’s buses were randomly inspected by State Troopers Darryl Winningham and Craig Wilkerson to ensure that they are being properly maintained. All passed inspection. An annual inspection is done for three days in January but unannounced spot checks, such as the one Monday, are conducted during the year.
The DeKalb County School System has 36 buses including 4 substitute buses.
“We do a complete level one inspection on the buses. We go from the bottom to the top and inside, outside but the biggest thing we’re looking at is the tires to make sure they have proper air inflation and for tread depth wear. We look at the steering boxes. We make sure there’s nothing wrong with the tie rods and ball joints. We check the exhaust system for leaks. We also check the lighting system and anything that has to deal with the stop signs for when the children are unloading and loading to see that they are working properly,” Trooper Wilkerson said
Jimmy Sprague, Transportation Supervisor for the DeKalb County School System said he is pleased with the results of the inspection and gave credit to the bus drivers and mechanics Michael Agee and Justin Coats.