There may be no perfect solutions when it comes to routing. As can be painfully clear to all concerned, the narrow timeframes for morning and afternoon operations leave little margin for error. At the same time, requirements such as serving students with special needs add another degree of difficulty, all amid a school bus driver shortage.

For some school districts, changing bell times has brought greater efficiency to the routing process. That’s the path taken by Prince George’s County Public Schools, one of the largest school districts in Maryland, where until this year transportation staff were faced with 13 different bell times in the morning and 17 in the afternoon.

“This made routing complicated and directly impacted the timely arrival of students to schools,” said Keba Baldwin, director of transportation and central garage.

But now, the district has moved to three standard bell times, and the results have been positive. “Changes in bell times have helped to improve transportation by simplifying route planning and improving route efficiency,” Baldwin noted.

Improvements include balancing the distribution of trips, reducing delays and making optimum use of buses and drivers. District officials also feel standardization across bell times makes schedules clearer and easier for families to understand.

For Tacoma Public Schools in Washington state, a change in this year’s bell times is also expected to have a major impact.

“We’ve shifted our secondary schools, with middle school now starting first,” said Zachary Midles, director of transportation. “We have also tiered our elementary schools to have two start times versus one.”

The primary goal was to improve the ability of transportation staff to manage expectations for on-time arrival. “We’ve attempted to improve efficiency with less resources,” Midles added. “This has involved numerous hours of planning and mapping out our process.”

Prospects for attaining that improvement seem promising, as district officials anticipate saving about $1 million a year following implementation of the new schedule.

“This is due to a reduction in overhead in routes, leading to less fuel and driver pay,” Midles explained. “We also plan to reduce the length of some routes with this strategy, which will also be a savings.”

A revision in bell times has also been the story this year for Fayetteville Public Schools in Arkansas. “It allows more time between elementary/middle school runs and secondary runs,” said Michael McClure, director of transportation services. “This has improved arrival times at secondary schools and decreased the supervision times for administrators at secondary schools.”

A catalyst to the changes was an external audit conducted last spring.

“Our bell times were a glaring issue,” McClure said. “In conjunction with our central administration, we followed up with the bell time changes.” While the move has not come without some challenges, the overall results have been “significantly better,” McClure said.

“The only issues we’re running into are for elementary schools that are geographically close to middle schools,” he continued. “There is a 15-minute gap in drop off times, so some elementary students sit on the bus for 10 minutes before we can release them in the morning.”

Recently, Celina Independent School District north of Dallas, Texas, made some initial changes in bell times and morning drop-off times, with more being considered.

“One of the key challenges with managing bell times is ensuring there’s sufficient time between the first and second bells, as well as between the second and third bells,” noted Laura Carter, transportation services director. “This scheduling allows students to arrive at school on time and have adequate time for breakfast. It’s also important to account for any potential delays between bell times.”

Along with those considerations, continued driver shortages are also a problem. That will be the impetus for proposing a three-tier bell schedule going forward, Carter added.

Addressing Special Needs:
With special populations, which pose their own set of challenges, restructuring bell times can be a plus. If that move brings overall efficiency, it can free up drivers for other than routine routes. “This has helped with on-time deliveries to our secondary schools for both general ed and special needs,” Carter reported. But that’s only a partial solution, and in some cases isn’t an option. Such is the situation for City Schools of Decatur, Georgia, a district with a small geographical footprint but with routes congested by Metro Atlanta traffic.

“The problem is that we have a three-tier system and only 45 minutes between each tier,” said LoWanda Bowman-Brown, director of transportation. “And the kicker is we have five lower elementary schools that all start at the same time. Someone is going to be late if you have one driver going to multiple schools.”

The district has three special needs drivers, one who travels out of district to a neighboring school. “Not only does this stretch things for them, but the bell schedule makes timing tight for others,” Bowman explained. “The bell schedule means the regular drivers are constantly driving with no break to use the restroom or speak with the administrators about any problems arising on their bus.”

Currently, however, there is no official discussion of adjusting bell times. “Since the community is very small, with a radius of only five miles, most parents are opposed to adjusting bell times,” she continued. “And due to the athletics department needing to leave at four for most games, it’s unlikely that bell times will be changed.”

Geography is also a limiting factor for Fayetteville Public Schools. “Our district is elongated from an East/West perspective and the corridors are not conducive to heavy traffic,” McClure noted. “Special needs students may attend school a significant distance from their residence, which causes longer travel times.”

Baldwin shared that Prince George County’s use of routing software can be helpful in this area, but that additional challenges may come into play when students require individualized accommodations such as wheelchair access, specific seating or aides.

“The software helps tailor routes to meet these needs, but balancing efficiency with safety is difficult, especially with longer loading times and specialized stops,” he said. “Additionally, maintaining route consistency during driver changes and quickly adjusting to updates in students’ IEPs requires constant oversight.”

While the software streamlines much of this process, he added, ensuring seamless communication between transportation, schools and parents is key to providing the best service for these students.

Making the Change:
Whether it’s an effort to improve overall routing or enhance services to students with special needs, the process requires a cooperative approach as well as a measure of thick skin.

“Expect issues and criticisms when implementing any new procedure, program or technology,” McClure in Arkansas said. “Trust that with time and a team working on those issues that everything will improve.”

Collaboration in dealing with such challenges is a must, Texas’ Carter noted. “Involving the
transportation department in the planning process has proven effective,” she said. “It’s essential to build strong, positive relationships with administration, campus staff, and
the special education department to ensure you have a voice in decision-making processes.”

Bowman in Georgia emphasized that communication, whether with the school district finance department to ask for a new driver, or the special needs department for support, is key to any solution. Whenever possible that means not just telling, but showing.

“Show them what transportation looks like so they will understand the challenges,” she advised. “Ask them to ride the bus or show them camera footage so they can see the challenges that may hold the bus up.”

As an example, he said it can be revealing to observe a staff member trying to put a student in the seat who refuses to get in it. “Innovation is key,” Washington’s Midles said, adding that “this is the way we’ve always done it” doesn’t mean it’s the right way.

“Partner with your district as much as you can to work as a team and put the students first as much as possible,” he concluded.

Editor’s Note: As reprinted in the October 2024 issue of School Transportation News.

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