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38 APPENDIX D Recruitment E-mail and Flyer for the Survey (Note: E-mail included text below, flyer for advertising, and an attachment including the survey form) Hello, My name is Doug Wiegand, and Iâm a Senior Research Associate at the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute (VTTI) in Blacksburg, VA. I am the Principal Investigator for a new Transportation Research Board Synthesis report entitled The Special Safety Concerns of School Bus Drivers . This synthesis will be published in the Transportation Research Boardâs Commercial Truck and Bus Safety Synthesis Program (http://www.trb.org/CRP/CTBSSP/CTBSSP.asp). Synthesis reports like this generally entail a thorough literature review and some other form of information gathering, such as a survey. VTTI is one of two subcontractors which were brought on board to complete the synthesis on the Special Safety Conc erns of School Bus Drivers. Daecher Consulting is completing the literature review portion of the synthesis, while VTTI is handling the survey portion. The survey (attached; also available for completion online at http://tinyurl.com/56u487 ) was developed and peer reviewed by VTTI researchers and an anonymous group of school bus transportation professionals. I would like to ask for your help in distributing the survey as widely as possible. We would like to have anyone who is involved in the school bus industry (drivers, attendant/monitors, fleet managers, manufacturers, members of trade associations, etc.) complete the survey between now and SEPTEMBER 1, 2008 . Apologies if you receive this e-mail multiple timesâsince Iâm asking for help in distributing it, you may receive it from several sources. If you wouldnât mind, please distribute the information below (between the rows of â+â symbols) to any school bus relevant listserve(s) you are a part of, or any other venues you think would be useful. Iâve also attached a flyer document/file if you would prefer to send it as an attachment. If you would like additional information or have any other questions/concerns, please donât hesitate to contact me. Thanks very much for your time and consideration. Douglas M. Wiegand, Ph.D. Senior Research Associate Center for Truck & Bus Safety Virginia Tech Transportation Institute 3500 Transportation Research Plaza Blacksburg, VA 24061 540.231.1055 (office) 540.231.1555 (fax) dwiegand@vtti.vt.edu +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Survey for the Transportation Research Board Synthesis on the Special Safety Concerns of School Bus Drivers (Project MC-21)
39 Under the sponsorship of the Transportation Research Board, MaineWay Services, along with the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute (VTTI) and Daecher Consulting is conducting a study focused on the special safety concerns of school bus operations. As a school bus transportation industry professional, your knowledge and opinions are important to this study. This survey, which should take approximately 45 minutes or less to complete, asks you about various school bus safety issues, how they are addressed, and your opinions for how they can be improved. Final total research results will be provided to interested parties and stakeholders, but all information provided by you will be kept strictly confidential! The information collected from this survey will not be used for any purposes other than research. If applicable, you may choose to skip any question(s) you are not comfortable answering. Your permission to include your survey data in the study database will be assumed once you complete/return this survey. Final results of this survey will be available through the Transportation Research Board in 2009.
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