News & Events

From School Transportation News / By Ryan Gray / July 23, 2026

RENO, Nev. — Transfinder swept the 2026 STN EXPO Innovation Choice Awards, taking first place in each of four product categories after main conference attendees cast ballots July 13 and 14 during the STN EXPO West trade show. 

The program, in its fifth consecutive year, recognized a winner and two finalists in the categories of Best Green Technology, Best Hardware, Best Safety Technology and Best Software/AI Solutions. A tie in the safety category expanded that group, with three products sharing third place. The results reflected attendees’ evaluations of technology presented on the show floor for use in school transportation operations.

Only STN EXPO West main conference attendees who are employees of school districts, bus contractors or consultants were eligible to vote.

Best Green Technology

Transfinder won Best Green Technology for Ride Impact Metrics, or RIM. The tool helps school districts and families quantify the broader effects of yellow school bus service by estimating avoided carbon emissions, household driving time saved and transportation savings. Attendee Sandy Dillman, this year’s winner of the Peter J. Grandolfo Memorial Award of Excellence, praised Transfinder’s “great products” and “even better customer service.”

RIDE earned second-place honors for its Blade Battery, a lithium-iron phosphate battery designed for electric vehicles with an emphasis on safety, energy density and cycle life. Attendee Denise George said, “Our best EV is from RIDE.”

Thomas Built Buses was the third-place finalist for the Saf-T-Liner eHDX2 Wattson, a Type D electric school bus that combines an 800-volt powertrain, integrated eAxle, flexible charging and vehicle-to-grid capability.

Best Hardware

STN EXPO West trade show attendees voted the Wayfinder Hardware Suite from Transfinder as Best Hardware. The integrated suite combines RFID reading, barcode and QR scanning, push-to-talk communication and PIN-based student identification, giving drivers more options to identify students and communicate with dispatch through one platform.

Zum Services took second place for its Connected Mobility Experience, or Zum CMX, which integrates routing, dispatch, workforce management, safety systems, communications and operational dashboards. Stone Mountain Ltd. received third-place honors for the UVox USB C Push to Talk Speaker Mic, which connects to Android, iOS and Windows devices over push-to-talk cellular networks and includes a dedicated emergency button.

Best Safety Technology

Transfinder’s Live Share won Best Safety Technology. The real-time mapping and incident-response tool allows transportation teams to share interactive maps, drawings and operational information with trusted recipients through secure text-based access. The company said the tool is designed to support coordination during emergencies, events and daily transportation planning.

Zonar’s Bus Suite was the second-place finalist. The platform brings routing, fleet management, GPS tracking, student ridership verification, driver workflows, dispatch, vehicle inspections and parent communication into one operational view intended to improve visibility and response time.

A three-way tie for third place honored Q’Straint, IC Bus and Geotab. Q’Straint ONE simplifies wheelchair securement through an all-in-one platform with visual and audible locking indicators. Attendee Christine Campoli-Silva called the Q’Straint system “very impressive.”

IC Bus was recognized for Fusion 3.0, which integrates radar, cameras, driver alerts and automated braking assistance. Geotab earned its place with Vitality, a program that uses telematics data, positive reinforcement and rewards to encourage safer driving behavior.

Best Software/AI Solutions

Transfinder completed its four-category sweep with Atlas & Intelligent Tools. The platform applies AI-assisted search and automation to routing, planning and operational data, including the use of actual bus speeds and stop times to improve maps and schedules. Attendee Jose Cruz cited its potential to provide “help with routing.”

Tyler Technologies earned second place for Rider AI Assistant, a chat interface within Tyler’s Student Transportation solution that answers operational questions and builds reports from plain-language prompts. IC Bus received third-place honors for My International, a connected platform that provides mixed-fleet vehicle monitoring, maintenance alerts, service management and dealer communication in one dashboard.

By placing the decision with eligible main conference attendees on the trade show floor, the Innovation Choice Awards highlighted the products that resonated most with the school transportation professionals who could evaluate them in person. Recognizing the top finishers in each category also broadened the spotlight on the range of new technology supporting safer, cleaner and more connected student transportation.