This article provides a brief overview of the settings available to transportation administrators in EZ Activity Trips. These settings help districts manage approvals, calendars, notifications, trip request forms, invoices, and other administrative features.
Approval Levels
Approval levels are configured during implementation and determine how trip requests are approved. Administrators can review each level, including its approvers, assigned schools, email addresses, and approved trip types. These settings are view-only. Changes to approver assignments are made through the Users list, while changes to trip types or approval-level configuration require assistance from the Support Desk.
Fiscal Years
Fiscal years define the financial periods used by the district. Administrators can create fiscal years, name them, enter beginning and ending dates, and optionally assign colors for easier identification. Fiscal years are managed in EZ Activity Trips, even when the site is synchronized with EZ Routing.
School Years and Sessions
School years and sessions organize trips within academic or operational periods. Districts that are synchronized with EZ Routing manage these settings in EZ Routing. Other districts can create school years, semesters, or summer sessions directly in EZ Activity Trips. Date ranges should cover the full year without gaps.
Calendars
Calendar settings control which user roles can access the Calendar tab and which calendars they can view. The available calendars include the Trip Calendar, Vehicle Calendar, and Driver Calendar. Administrators can enable or disable calendar access for each role and save their changes.
Notifications
Notification settings control automated messages sent by the application. Notifications can be configured for denied, rescheduled, canceled, and approved trips; vehicle assignments; scheduled reminders; vehicle problems reported to mechanics; invoices; and driver bidding. Administrators can review who receives each type of notification.
Drivers
Driver settings include labels displayed in the driver table, driver preferences, the driver assistant label, and options that control driver assignment. Administrators can review and update these settings as district needs change.
Vehicle Owners
Vehicle owner settings determine whether vehicles can be assigned to canceled trips and define the gap time around a trip. Gap time keeps a vehicle and driver marked as unavailable for a designated period before or after the scheduled trip.
Trip Request Form
The Trip Request Form settings provide tools for customizing the information requesters see and complete when submitting a trip.
Labels and Messages
Administrators can update form labels and informational messages by section. Messages appear in blue boxes at the top of applicable form sections and can provide guidance about questions or district requirements.
Display and Hide Options
Specific parts of the request form can be displayed or hidden. These settings allow districts to simplify the form or show only the information relevant to their process.
Custom Form Fields
Custom fields can be added to different sections of the request form. Administrators can choose whether a field is required, select the response type, write the prompt, adjust the field size, and determine which trip types display the field.
Dates and Times
Date and time settings include trip time messages, block dates, special dates, and lead days. These options can warn requesters about certain times, prevent requests during restricted periods, display reminders without blocking submissions, and control how far in advance trips must be submitted.
Chaperone Rules
Chaperone rules help districts require appropriate adult coverage for trips. Rules can be configured by date range and may vary based on criteria such as grade level.
Trip Tickets and Permission Slips
This section contains templates for trip tickets and permission slips. Administrators can manage the templates and use available keywords to customize the information displayed. The Support Desk can provide assistance with template changes.
Trip Estimator
The Trip Estimator settings determine whether the estimator is displayed and used. Districts can configure rates, fuel prices, and the estimator template.
Other Settings
The Other section includes the option to enable drafts. When drafts are enabled, requesters can save incomplete trip requests and return to them later.
Invoices
Invoice settings control the invoice layout and the options displayed on invoices. Districts can choose between a district-wide driver rate and individual driver rates. Custom fields can also be added to invoice sections using a process similar to the Trip Request Form.
Yellow Bus
Yellow Bus settings support districts that use the Yellow Bus module, primarily in North Carolina. Districts that do not use this module may not need to configure these settings.
Driver Bidding
Districts that use driver bidding can configure bidding-related settings and create custom fields for bids. These options help align the bidding process with district requirements.
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