Transportation

Three students wearing cloth face masks look out the windows of a yellow school bus.
Students in Freeport, Maine, head home on a school bus earlier this year.
Robert F. Bukaty/AP
School & District Management Lacking Bus Drivers, Schools Make Tough Calls on Transportation
Three districts talk about how they've had to revise their transportation plans this school year and get the message to families.
Evie Blad, August 19, 2022
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6 min read
Image: San Carlos, CA, USA - 2019 : Yellow low emissions NGV school bus refuel cleanest burning alternative fuel at compressed natural gas CNG fueling station owned by PG&E
Michael V/iStock Editorial/Getty Images Plus
Education Funding 3 Things in the Senate Climate-Change Bill That Could Affect K-12 Schools
The sweeping proposal includes funding opportunities for schools to operate electric buses and improve air quality in buildings.
Mark Lieberman, July 29, 2022
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3 min read
Illustration of a man holding oversized money.
Nuthawut Somsuk/iStock/Getty
Budget & Finance Interest Rates Are Going Up to Fight Inflation. Schools May Feel the Pain Either Way
Rising costs, expected higher wages, and diminished voter support for school levies have district leaders worried.
Mark Lieberman, July 5, 2022
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4 min read
Stockton Unified School District's new electric bus fleet reduces over 120,000 pounds of carbon emissions and leverages The Mobility House's smart charging and energy management system.
The new electric bus fleet at California's Stockton Unified School District is projected to reduce the district's carbon emissions.
Business Wire via AP
School & District Management Schools Can Access Tons of Money for Electric Buses. Will They Use It?
Electric buses are growing more appealing as fuel prices rise, but some districts remain wary of the cost and logistics.
Mark Lieberman, June 16, 2022
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5 min read
Image of buses lined up with stop signs extended out.
Getty
Equity & Diversity Study Links Longer School Bus Rides to Chronic Absenteeism
Chronic absenteeism rates are as high as 12 percent for students with long bus rides, researchers find.
Williamena Kwapo, June 16, 2022
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2 min read
Students board buses at Frances Slocum Elementary School in Marion, Ind., after classes on Thursday, Aug. 16, 2018. Marion Community Schools is looking for more bus drivers.
Students board buses at Frances Slocum Elementary School in Marion, Ind., where the school district has struggled to fill open positions for bus drivers—part of the larger wave of staffing shortages in schools.
Jeff Morehead/The Chronicle-Tribune via AP
Recruitment & Retention How School Staffing Shortages Are Hurting Students
Essential nonteaching school employees are in high demand, and when their positions go unfilled, high-need students suffer most.
Mark Lieberman, June 15, 2022
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11 min read
A bus full of meals drives down a road as Chattahoochee County schools provides meals for their students for the last time before summer break on Thursday, May 7, 2020, in Cusseta, Ga.
Bus drivers provide the start and end to many students' school days—playing a critical role in learning. But with relatively low pay and challenging working conditions, veteran drivers are leaving for other jobs and districts are struggling to fill open positions with new ones.
Brynn Anderson/AP
Recruitment & Retention 'It's Hard to See the Perks': Schools Face Tough Sell in Filling Key Jobs
Bus drivers and other K-12 workers say they are underpaid for the difficult jobs they do to keep schools running.
Mark Lieberman, June 15, 2022
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6 min read
A school bus is reflected in a bus mirror.
FCC Chair Jessica Rosenworcel announced a proposal on May 11 that would allow the use of federal E-rate funding for Wi-Fi in school buses.
Eric Gay/AP
Ed-Tech Policy Wi-Fi on School Buses: Smart Move or Stupidest Idea Ever?
An FCC proposal to use E-Rate funding to put Wi-Fi on school buses prompted strong reactions on social media.
Lauraine Langreo, May 18, 2022
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3 min read
A Brownsville Independent School District bus acts as a Wi-Fi hotspot for students needing to connect online for distance learning at the beginning of the 2020-21 school year in the Texas school system.
A Brownsville Independent School District bus acts as a WI-FI hotspot for students needing to connect online for distance learning on the first day of class Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2020, in the parking lot of the Margaret M. Clark Aquatic Center in Brownsville, Texas. The bus is one of 20 hotspots throughout the city to help students have access to their online classes as part of the remote start to the school year due to COVID-19 pandemic.
Denise Cathey/The Brownsville Herald via AP
IT Infrastructure Internet on School Buses: FCC Eyes E-Rate Change to Expand Access
FCC Chair Jessica Rosenworcel announced a proposal that would allow the use of federal E-rate funding for Wi-Fi in school buses.
Lauraine Langreo, May 12, 2022
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2 min read
Composite of photo of gas prices and bar chart showing an upward arrow with an illustration of a gas pump.
Gina Tomko/Education Week and Getty
Budget & Finance Some Surprising Things Schools Might Have to Cut Because of Fuel Cost Increases
A spike in transportation and delivery costs is forcing some administrators to cut classroom spending and increase school lunch prices.
Mark Lieberman, April 13, 2022
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4 min read
Buses parked covered with snow
iStock/Getty
Budget & Finance How Skyrocketing Fuel Prices Are Hurting Schools
Districts are facing the possibility of budget cuts and contractor departures as the cost of transporting children to school hits new peaks.
Mark Lieberman, March 17, 2022
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7 min read
Illustration of hands reaching for dollar signs that are falling from the sky.
DigitalVision/Vectors/Getty
Recruitment & Retention Districts Are Raising Wages to Fix Shortages. Is It Sustainable?
Staff shortages have pushed districts to increase pay. But some might have to cut programs or staff to make higher wages permanent.
Mark Lieberman, February 7, 2022
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11 min read
Students catch their bus near Ambridge Area Senior High School on the first day of Pennsylvania's mask mandate for K-12 schools and day care centers on Tuesday, Sept. 7, 2021, in Ambridge, Pa.
Students catch their bus near Ambridge Area Senior High School in Ambridge, Pa., earlier this year on the first day of Pennsylvania's mask mandate for K-12 schools.
Andrew Rush/Pittsburgh Post-Gazette via AP
Education Funding Here's How Schools Can Use Federal COVID Aid to Solve Bus Driver and Other Transportation Woes
The Education Department outlines districts' options for using relief money to solve nationwide problems in getting kids to and from school.
Andrew Ujifusa, November 15, 2021
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2 min read
Members of the Vermont Army National Guard help direct traffic through the food distribution site at the Brattleboro Union High School, in Brattleboro, Vt., on Thursday, June 11, 2020.
A Vermont National Guard member directs traffic for a food distribution site at a high school in Brattleboro, Vt. In some states, concerns over costs, liabilities, and resources are preventing school districts from getting Guard help for bus transportation and COVID testing.
Kristopher Radder/Brattleboro Reformer via AP
School & District Management Are Bus Driver Shortages So Bad They Require the National Guard? Why Leaders Made the Call
Schools in nearly a dozen states are calling for the Guard to fill bus driver gaps—but logistics, optics, and funding are in the way.
Mark Lieberman, November 4, 2021
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5 min read
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