Dispatcher — School Bus & Paratransit
About The Position
As a Dispatcher - School Bus & Paratransit, you will help control Cathay Express Transportation Inc.'s daily school bus, OPWDD, and paratransit/non-emergency medical transportation service. This hands-on role confirms daily readiness, assigns qualified drivers and appropriate vehicles, monitors service from pullout through pull-in, responds to disruptions, communicates with customers and operating partners, and maintains accurate records. The Dispatcher must work within established authority and immediately escalate safety, qualification, handoff, and service risks. Company Background Cathay Express Transportation, Inc. is a Queens-based transportation provider serving patients, nursing homes, clinics, private organizations, healthcare partners, public agencies, and community transportation customers throughout New York City and New York State. The company provides non-emergency medical transportation, ambulette, wheelchair, stretcher, school bus, public transit, and related mobility services with a strong focus on safe, timely, reliable, and customer-centered service. Cathay team members are expected to perform through the Company's Five Operating Pillars: Safety, Service, People, Accountability, and Continuous Improvement. These principles guide daily decisions, employee conduct, customer communication, performance, and improvement across every service line.
Requirements
- Minimum of two (2) years of dispatch, transportation operations, customer service, logistics, or comparable coordination experience required.
- High school diploma or equivalent required.
- Ability to manage competing priorities and make timely decisions in a fast-paced operating environment.
- Clear communication skills.
- Accurate recordkeeping skills.
- Strong computer skills.
- Ability to learn service-area geography and transportation systems quickly.
- Hands-on ability to manage live dispatch, staffing coverage, route performance, driver communication, verified ETA management, and service recovery.
- Sound judgment regarding safety, qualification holds, emergency response, authorized release, documentation, privacy, and escalation.
- Must be at least 18 years of age.
- Must be legally authorized to work in the United States.
- Must meet applicable pre-employment requirements, which may include background screening and testing where permitted or required by law.
Nice To Haves
- Familiarity with Article 19-A, school bus operations, ADA service requirements, OPWDD transportation, MAS transportation, or wheelchair transportation preferred.
- Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook, and shared digital tracking tools.
- GPS and vehicle-monitoring platforms such as Samsara, along with RouteGenie, MAS, TripShot, Passio, or comparable transportation systems.
- Multi-line phone, radio, and dispatch communication systems.
Responsibilities
- Verify driver qualifications, including license, endorsements, Article 19-A status, medical and training status, drug and alcohol status, and available duty time before dispatch.
- Confirm assigned vehicle is approved for service, has no unresolved safety defects, and meets all requirements (capacity, wheelchair lift, child-restraint, communications, equipment).
- Coordinate vehicle substitutions or road calls with Maintenance.
- Protect students and riders through required vehicle sweeps, post-trip child-check confirmation, individual instructions, emergency response, and authorized handoffs.
- Control daily service from pre-pullout through final pull-in by assigning routes, trips, drivers, vehicles, and monitors/aides.
- Manage callouts, late reports, open work, and vehicle substitutions without compromising qualifications or safety.
- Monitor vehicles, route progress, schedule adherence, and exceptions through GPS/telematics, routing, broker, phone, and radio systems.
- Respond to traffic, weather, breakdowns, missed trips, late service, and deviations with timely recovery actions and verified ETAs.
- Follow specific service line requirements (school bus routes/bell times, OPWDD standing transportation/instructions, paratransit/NEMT manifests/will-calls/returns/add-ons/cancellations/no-shows).
- Communicate calmly and clearly with drivers, monitors, riders, students, families, schools, residences, program sites, medical facilities, brokers, agency contacts, and internal departments.
- Provide drivers and monitors with current route, passenger, equipment, and service instructions.
- Reinforce dispatch procedures and escalate attendance, conduct, training, or performance concerns to the appropriate supervisor.
- Treat every student, rider, family member, and employee with dignity, and protect sensitive information.
- Maintain a complete, time-stamped dispatch log of assignments, calls, exceptions, notifications, decisions, actions, and outcomes.
- Provide a clear handoff for open work, active incidents, disabled vehicles, and pending follow-up.
- Serve as the first operating contact for accidents, injuries, breakdowns, possible abuse or neglect, elopement, unaccounted-for passengers, and other serious events.
- Stabilize the response, contact emergency services when required, notify management and Safety, and begin documentation.
- Reconcile trips and service records against manifests and electronic systems.
- Review daily results for on-time performance, missed service, callouts, route exceptions, complaints, incidents, vehicle availability, documentation gaps, and recurring failures.
- Identify patterns and recommend practical improvements to routes, schedules, staffing, fleet assignments, communications, training, and escalation procedures.
- Use Samsara, RouteGenie, MAS, TripShot, Trapeze, and other assigned systems effectively.
- Share field observations and help implement approved improvements across service lines.
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Mid Level
Education Level
High school or GED
