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Community Outreach: Outreach Vehicles

Outreach Vehicles

Looking to purchase a new bookmobile, Sprinter van or other outreach vehicle? After you've finished raising the funds and gotten the necessary approval from your board, you'll need to start the procurement process. For most libraries, this will include getting bids from different vendors to help choose which vendor to purchase from.

While drafting the request for bids, make sure to include every single thing that the vehicle needs to have. These can be small items like a step to enter the bookmobile and electrical outlets to plug a laptop into or large items like a generator or storage. The following questions will help prompt some ideas of items to consider when writing the request so that the chosen vendor can fulfill all of the needs of the library:

  • Are there any state or local restrictions on vehicle size and licensing?How many passengers will be riding on the vehicle?
  • What is the temperature range that the vehicle will be traveling in?
  • What types of conditions and roads will the vehicle be driving in?
  • What will the electrical load be?
    • What needs to be plugged in (laptop, receipt printer, barcode scanner, WiFi HotSpot, phone charger, etc.)?
    • Does the vehicle need AC/Heat? How will these be ran?
    • If a generator is deemed necessary, is it accessible, easy to maintain, safely out of the way of road elements, properly ventilated, etc.?
  • How much shelving and storage is needed?
    • How will different materials be shelved?
    • Is there a space to return items?
    • How much storage space is needed for bookmobile and emergency supplies?
    • Does staff need a storage area for their coats, bags, etc.?
  • How will patrons access materials? On a cart, outside, in a bin, physically on the vehicle?
  • How will materials be taken on and removed from the vehicle? (hand truck? lift? staff lifting bins?)
  • Consider all possible fixtures including windows, side mirrors, rear-view mirrors, steps, gas caps, windshield wipers, seat belts, door locks, etc.

New Bookmobile Guidance

Library Mobile Outreach (Part One): A practical guide for selecting the correct vehicle for your library from Infopeople on Vimeo. Learn the pros and cons of today’s most popular vehicles from a library service perspective. You will hear how choosing the correct van, truck, bus or trailer can improve your service efficiencies, provide reliable services, and keep your budget intact. Presenter Michael Swendrowski will share practical tips on which vehicle types are best suited for your region, patron groups and/or service models. He will also reveal which vehicles offer alternative fuel options and share general cost ranges for each.

Library Mobile Outreach (Part Two): A guide for selecting the correct options and features for your new vehicle from Infopeople on Vimeo. In this webinar, you will learn about popular conversion options, systems and features being built into the latest outreach vehicles. You will hear how choosing the correct features can improve your service, offer staff efficiency and reduce your operating costs. Presenter Michael Swendrowski will share practical tips on which features are best suited for your particular service and any service concerns that may be associated. He will also share the relative costs associated with each and even discuss the latest trends! Today’s bookmobiles, mobile libraries, kidmobiles and mobile STEM units can be outfitted with all the latest technologies, systems and features, but are they right for you? The choices you make will have a short-term effect on project costs and a long-term effect on usability!

Bringing the Library to You! Mobile Library Solutions Grant (if only I had known…) from Infopeople on Vimeo. Purchasing a mobile library is a complex, lengthy process, during which your library will probably work with another city/county department to select, award, and monitor the build out of a unit. The webinar will outline the steps involved, your likely partners, and what you can control, and what you cannot.

Outreach Vehicle Vendors

The vendors below are some of the most popular bookmobile and outreach vehicle outfitters.

ADA on the Bookmobile

Does your bookmobile need a wheelchair accessible lift? Librarians go back and forth on this issue. While some claim that they want the vehicle to be accessible to all, others claim that it takes up space and has never been used in their bookmobile's lifespan. The ADA Guide for Small Towns linked below indicates that bookmobiles do not need to be accessible in order to meet ADA requirements as long as the library can provide access through other means such as receiving library services at the building or having their materials brought outside of the bookmobile by library staff.

For more information on accessibility in the library, see this Libraries and Accessibility tab in NDSL's LibGuides.

Transform your Bookmobile

Bookmobiles are often made custom to the library, so feel free to get creative. Below are some examples of service-specific outreach vehicles.

Outreach Vehicle Advocacy

The resources below will help celebrate the library's bookmobile and other outreach vehicles.

IMLS logo

Many of these resources and programs are funded under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act from the Institute of Museum and Library Services.