Mastering Zonar
★ Zonar Products · Z Pass
Z Pass records when and where each student gets on and off the bus with a simple card scan at the door. Here is how it works, what it stores and how the reader goes in.
Product image for reference.
Z Pass is Zonar's student ridership tracking system for school buses and other passenger transport. Each rider carries a passive RFID card and scans it at a Z Pass reader mounted inside the bus door when they board and again when they get off. Each scan records the date, time and location and sends it to a secure database, so the district knows who is on which bus, and where and when they boarded or exited. Z Pass is an Edison Award winner.
Every scan captures the time, date and location of the boarding or exit. Each card is tied to a unique identification number, and Zonar states that no personal student information is captured or stored on the card. The link between a card number and a student lives in the district's own system.
The plain answer is the phone call every transportation office dreads: a parent asking where their child is. With Z Pass, staff can see when and where that student last scanned instead of radioing every driver. The same records help when a student is missing, help answer parents faster, and give the district real ridership numbers for planning routes.
| Part | Detail |
|---|---|
| Reader | RFID reader mounted inside the bus door |
| Cards | Passive RFID cards, one per rider |
| Data sent | Date, time and location of each scan, sent immediately |
| Power | Low-power sleep mode when idle |
| Platform | Zonar Ignition, with MyView for parents |
The Z Pass reader inside the bus door has one multi-color light and a beep. Tap a pattern to see it, hear the beep, and hear what it means.
Tap a light pattern to see it
Each button plays the pattern on the drawing above, says out loud what it means, and tells you what to do.
The reader has to be where every rider passes it, at a height the youngest riders can reach, and solid enough to take years of backpacks and hands. Zonar describes it as a simple mounting system; the work that takes care is the power run from the bus to the door area, routed and protected so it is not pinched by the door mechanism or worn through on the step well. Confirm the power circuit with a meter before you connect, using our Vehicle Wiring Database for wire colors, then scan test cards on and off to confirm each scan reaches the platform before the bus goes back into service. We cover the full job on our student ridership RFID installation page.
Z Pass fits school districts, private and charter schools, and contractors that bus students, especially those already on Zonar for their buses. Districts on another bus platform should check how Z Pass fits their existing routing software before choosing it.
When you are ready to put these in your vehicles, API Signal supplies the hardware, sets up the monthly service and has our technicians install it on site at your yard, so the vehicles never leave your lot. Call 803-513-1009 or use Get Zonar Pricing and Installation to set a date.
Sources: Zonar Z Pass product page. ZONAR is a trademark of Zonar Systems, Inc. Other product names belong to their owners. API Signal is an independent installer and is not Zonar.
No. Zonar states no personal student information is captured or stored. Each card carries a unique ID number.
Yes. Through the Zonar MyView app, parents can track the bus and see when and where their child boarded or got off.
Inside the bus door, where riders scan their card when they board and when they exit.
The date, time and location of the boarding or exit.
Tell us how many vehicles and what they are. We'll quote the hardware and the install together.