Two years ago, 5-year-old A.M., a child with autism, became the victim of bullying on the school bus he rode to elementary school in the Poudre School District of Fort Collins, Colorado. The perpetrator of A.M.’s abuse was not a fellow student, but a school bus attendant the district had hired to provide students like him with extra support.

Not only was A.M., whose full name is withheld in court documents, restrained in a school bus seat throughout the months-long abuse, his disability rendered him nonverbal, leaving him unable to ask for help or tell his parents what was happening.

The school board agreed to pay out $16.2 million on May 14 to settle a lawsuit filed by parents of A.M. and other students with disabilities who were abused by Tyler Zanella while being transported to and from school during the 2022-2023 school year.

Comparatively, the settlement is about 15 percent of the district’s $10.3 million transportation services budget for this past school year.

After voting to accept the settlement, Poudre school board president Kristen Draper said she hoped the amount would help foster healing and rebuild trust.

“This resolution represents our collective commitment to addressing the harm caused and to supporting the ongoing recovery and well-being of these students and their families,” Draper said.

A.M. was not Zanella’s only victim. In all, county prosecutors say the attendant abused 10 students that school year.

The district uncovered Zanella’s criminal history and a previous child abuse conviction during a background check before he was hired in August 2022. A.M.’s parents also voiced concern about the attendant throughout the school year, but their words did not prompt change until a teacher stepped in.

When A.M. came to class with red marks on his face, a teacher asked questions, prompting the school district to review camera footage and report the abuse to police.

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Related: Colorado School Bus Aid Arrested, Charged with Abusing Student

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Internal bus camera footage documented Zanella swearing at A.M., calling him names, and subjecting him to physical abuse, slapping, pinching, and pushing the restrained child dozens of times over several months. According to court documents, Zanella called A.M. a f—–,” “little sh–,” and said, “if A.M. were his kid, he would be dead by now because Mr. Zanella did not have that kind of patience.”

Zanella, 36, ultimately pleaded guilty to seven counts of assault on an at-risk person, as well as harassment, and child abuse. He was sentenced to 12 years in prison in April 2024.

He also had a previous misdemeanor child abuse conviction when he applied for the  position at Poudre School District. Title 22 of the Colorado Revised Statutes lists felony child abuse as cause for termination or withholding employment.

David Lane, A.M.’s attorney, said in an email he was shocked that Zanella had been hired after school officials learned of his criminal history and that he had lied about it.

“It is utterly incomprehensible how a school district could allow a convicted child abuser to have access to utterly helpless children in this situation,” Lane wrote. “Ultimately, this governmental failure will cost the taxpayers millions of dollars and these innocent children have been severely damaged.”

Following the incident, the district spent $2 million on internal policies, which included hiring consultants at the Center for Effective School Operations, or CESO, to review the district’s policies. Among primary recommendations, CESO suggested the district develop procedures for camera footage requests and supervisor audits.

In a school board presentation on the transportation review findings last summer, Chief Operations Officer Jeff Connell reflected on how school bus driver shortages led to mechanics and supervisors driving buses, and many employees taking shortcuts.

Connell said the district was hiring an integration services transportation manager dedicated to coordinating support for students with disabilities as well as a second operations manager. Per the CESO recommendation, Connell said both managers would oversee north and south terminals to maintain a consistent culture across both locations. Connell said he hoped to cover the budget for the positions by increasing route efficiencies.

The school district previously maintained three days of video footage from each camera. Supervisors are now required to review at least one hour of footage each week, “with an emphasis on routes that have new staff and routes that serve students with special needs – particularly students who are pre- or non-verbal.”

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Related: Florida School Bus Attendant Arrested for Inappropriate Behavior with Young Girls
Related: Seminar Provides Elements of Comprehensive Training for School Bus Attendants
Related: South Carolina Case Highlights Need for Attendants on School Buses

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Moving forward, the district promised to update cameras on all school buses—a $1.9 million cost paid for with bonds. The district hired transportation service provider Zum to install four internal cameras on each school bus, including a driver-facing camera with a built-in coaching system.

“There’s a lot of hours of video to go through between ride-alongs, reviewing the video, following up on incidences and also having the driver-coaching camera, we’re going to have a lot of information available to us that we’ve never had before,” Connell said.

Draper described the incident as a painful chapter in the school district’s history but added that she hoped it would prove to be a “catalyst for important and necessary improvements.”

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DENVER, Colo. – EverDriven, the leader in Alternative Student Transportation, reinforces its commitment to transparency with the launch of this year’s Safety and Operations Report. With the largest operational footprint in the industry, EverDriven safely transported 31,806 students, completed 2,056,987 trips, and covered 33,136,956 miles between April 1, 2024, and March 31, 2025.

EverDriven’s Safety and Operations Report provides school districts and families with key safety metrics on driver compliance, vehicle reliability, incident and risk management, as well as student-centered safety measures. By regularly sharing this data, EverDriven aims to uphold the highest standards of safety and accountability in the industry while continuously improving its operations to ensure every student benefits from a safe and reliable ride to school.

“Over the past year, we’ve deepened our commitment to what matters most: ensuring every student reaches school safely and reliably,” said Mitch Bowling, CEO of EverDriven. “The insights captured in our Safety and Operations Report reflect a year of growth, continuous learning, and strengthened practices across every part of our operations. Families and school districts place their trust in us, and our record-setting safety performance is a direct result of the vigilance, transparency, and accountability that define EverDriven’s approach every day.”

With the most comprehensive background checks in the industry and ongoing vetting processes, EverDriven ensures collaboration with safe drivers who prioritize the well-being of students at every turn. The organization upholds safety and compliance requirements for 100% of drivers via pre-service drug testing, multi-layered background checks, motor vehicle record reviews, continued education in safety protocols, defensive driving, and sensitivity practices to support students with unique needs. 100% of vehicles pass annual safety inspections by a certified third party and are subject to random safety checks. Further, EverDriven’s operational standards align with 100% of applicable state-level mandates and Department of Education regulations for small-capacity vehicles.

Local operations teams play a crucial role in ensuring reliability by tracking inclement weather, resolving challenges in real time, and managing EverDriven trips with precision. As a result, 99.63% of scheduled trips were completed as planned. 99.60% of trips ran smoothly, with no concerns reported by families or district administrators.

With 70.81% of trips for students with special needs supported by the same driver, EverDriven offers consistency—an essential factor in building trust, providing emotional stability, and supporting successful transitions for students who benefit from routine. 90.24% of two million trips arrived within five minutes of the scheduled drop-off time, helping students stay on track in the classroom. With a 360-degree approach to safety, EverDriven champions safe practices in every aspect of operations, vetting, protocol, and oversight. Thanks to these rigorous standards, 99.99% of trips were completed safely, without incidents involving passengers or vehicles.

“We’re always looking for new ways to innovate to protect our most vulnerable, whether through advanced safety technologies, enhanced driver training, or real-time monitoring to ensure seamless service,” said Bowling. “We are incredibly proud to be fully compliant with Senate Bill 88 in California and to have implemented the EverDriven Camera Solution, powered by AI, across 55 districts in 12 states, raising the bar for student safety.”

Equipped to help all students get to school regardless of their unique needs, age, or circumstances, EverDriven is the leader in inclusive and transparent Alternative Student Transportation services. This and future reports will provide ongoing insights into safety trends, compliance updates, and new safety initiatives, setting the industry benchmark for ongoing visibility and data-driven credibility.

For more details on EverDriven’s commitment to safety, download the full report.

About EverDriven:
With nearly 700 school district contracts and over 28,000 students served last year alone, EverDriven is the leader in safe and technology-enabled Alternative Student Transportation. Leveraging proprietary routing technology and customized transportation services, the company has been instrumental in addressing driver shortages, reducing chronic absenteeism, accommodating varying bell times, and serving unique student needs related to the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, special needs, ESSA, hard-to-serve trips, and out-of-district placements. For more information, visit www.everdriven.com.

The post EverDriven Launches its 2025 Safety and Operations Report Detailing 99.99% Safety Record Across 2M Trips appeared first on School Transportation News.

Despite hesitancy with artificial intelligence, Denver Public Schools learned with partner HopSkipDrive to optimize its school-bus routes with AI-driven software.

“I think that there’s a nervousness that AI will take over the world and get rid of the need of routing,” said Tyler Maybee, director of operations for transportation services at Denver Public Schools. “I honestly think this is just seen as a time saver and a way to create a really functional base level of understanding for a particular routing team. I think it’s meant to be a support tool. It’s never meant to replace … I’m not looking to reduce my staff because I use RouteWise AI.”

Maybee explained that during the pandemic, DPS formed a partnership with HopSkipDrive’s alternative transportation services for McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act transportation. He explained that busing students protected by the federal law is sometimes inefficient because they are often located far from their home schools.

It was around early 2022 that the company brought up its idea of an AI solution to DPS.

“We’re a very innovative district, and we always jump on board any type of chance to help push the boundaries of transportation,” said Maybee, who has a data background. Before joining DPS, he served as a data analyst for a non-profit, One Earth Future Foundation.

He explained that when HopSkipDrive presented the RouteWise idea, he thought it could work well for the district.

“We partnered with them, signed an agreement to share data, and we worked with them on parts of the tool that would be beneficial for our business. We created basically the whole thing together,” he added.

Corey McMahon, chief product and technology officer at HopSkipDrive, said RouteWise AI officially launched in 2023 and the software “is a planning tool that helps districts make smarter and faster transportation decisions.

“What it does is it analyzes all their data, ridership, vehicles, traffic policies and it gives them customized routing scenarios that can save them time, money, reduce emissions, reduce student time in transit, whatever their district priorities are,” he continued.

He explained that when districts sign on, they’re paired with the RouteWise AI team of experts, consisting of former directors, routers and consultants from the industry. McMahon said the experts sit down with the district to understand constraints, policies and goals. From there, they build out a custom AI model specifically to represent their transportation system.

“That AI model generates thousands of scenarios, and from those produces optimized results based on their priorities,” he said, adding that districts can then adjust, tweak or tune them through their existing tools. The software is routing software agnostic and integrates with the district’s existing routing software.

A new function is the insights dashboard, which compares data points on a national level. It launched at the start of the year and McMahon said it serves as a spot for district leaders to see all their data in one place. Recently, a national benchmark function was added, which gives district leaders a chance to compare student ride times, cost per student, and bus utilization rates against their peers.

Maybee explained that one of the data points DPS looks at on the dashboard is the utilization percentage. “For us, that’s kind of an important thing, making sure that our buses are full and that our buses are being well utilized,” he said.

Another function is its new feature for on-time arrival. “It kind of gives us the overall picture of which segments (segment is one run of service for a school) in our in a route package that are a potential risk for running late, based on the number of students that are on there … depending on the variability of traffic.”

McMahon said the lateness factor is determined by looking at how tight the routes are. “If everything has to go perfectly for a bus to be on time, it has a high lateness risk,” he explained. “If there is flexibility in the system for unexpected events, student comes out late, late traffic, etc., then your lateness risk is lower.”

By implementing the software, DPS has saved more than $500,000 annually. Maybee said the software is primarily being used to evaluate start times and adjust bell times. He explained that all secondary schools recently moved to an 8:20 a.m. or later start time, and DPS used the tool to inform decisions around bell time adjudgments, which resulted in the savings.

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“We’ve worked with them a couple more times to look at our current state route packages, and they’ve given us a couple suggestions on merging some routes together, or putting bus packages together into one bus and taking a bus off the road that has saved us money,” he said, adding that the software will also recommend taking one student off a particular route to save time. “Their tool is pretty service agnostic. It’s not going to favor putting students on a vendor over putting them on a yellow bus. Their philosophy is generally, if we make a school district’s transportation system healthy, then there’s a natural spot for [alternative transportation] to exist, because there’s always going to be students that are inefficient in the overall system.”

Maybee added that the software is not meant to replace an existing routing provider or routers.

“We’re never going to lose routers because of this software,” he said. “It’s meant to be an additional set of eyes and a starting point to build routes. There are always going to be things that our routers know that that system does not. I have kids that are better suited to be on a yellow bus, and we put them on a yellow bus, even if it’s quote, unquote not efficient, but it’s the right thing to do for that student’s needs. And that’s something that our routers know and that our computer system is never going to know, but it at least gives you an 85 percent solution to get you in the right direction, to provide you the space that you need.”

Data Driven

As for the safety element of using RouteWise AI, Maybee related back to the lateness factor of the program. “In terms of buses running on time, you’re reducing your risk of danger zone infractions, as students aren’t running to get on the bus quickly or crossing a dangerous street.”

He said the software understands the factors that a router inputs, such as right-side only picks up that eliminate the need for students to cross the street, no highway travel, etc.

“It manipulates routes with the data that you provide, so it wouldn’t put a bus stop, for example, in the middle of a busy street,” he said.

McMahon said the challenge for increased safety is the entire ecosystem from the strain of the school bus driver shortage to inefficient routes. “You have a lot of chaos at pickup and drop off, where you have late routes, you have overcrowded busses or underutilized busses, etc. And so, reducing that chaos, minimizing ride times, and making sure that people are where they need to be, when they need to be there,” he said of elements that make pupil transportation safer. “If you have busses arriving late, you have students waiting in unsafe areas. And there’s a number of safety implications, as you can imagine there.”

Maybee added that by using the software, the amount of time it has taken for the routing team to get the entire school year up and running has been significantly reduced. “We kind of have a starting spot with the solution presented for RouteWise AI, that we can then implement as our base layer and build from there,” he said. “We have massive time reductions within our routing team, which allows them to pay attention to detail better, and allows them to take care of the accommodations and take care of the students that need to be taken care of at the highest level, really providing better equity in terms of our service.”

McMahon said one of the greatest elements of the insight dashboard is the availability of more data. “What we’re really trying to do is build a transportation intelligence platform that allows leaders to look at data from all of these sources as they deploy new technology, whether that’s cameras or telematics or ridership tracking or anything out there, they need a way to make sense of it all, and so that’s really where the dashboard is trying to fit in.”

Maybee concluded by saying there is a fear about AI in student transportation. But he cautioned other districts to not feed into the misconception.

“We’re the content experts, and a computer is never going to fully know what we know,” he said. “And I agree with that statement, but I also think that a computer has a better sense of being able to understand the entire picture and giving a solution that has at least the context of the entire picture that you can then kind of manipulate from there. We were surprised with some of the combinations that it came up with. …It never makes sense to just turn on RouteWise AI have it create things and then just like, spit it out and say, okay ‘Driver, go do this.’ That’s not going to lead to beneficial day-to-day service.”

The post New Technology Provides Data to School Bus Routing appeared first on School Transportation News.

General Motors and Hyundai announced they were exploring a partnership focused on joint product development, manufacturing, and clean energy technologies last fall. The companies were coy on specifics, but reports emerged in January that Hyundai could supply GM with electric vans.

Fast forward to today and the pieces are starting to fall into place as Reuters is reporting that Hyundai could give GM two electric commercial vans. In return, GM could give Hyundai a pickup that would be based on the Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon.

More: Hyundai Could Supply GM With Electric Commercial Vehicles

This is interesting to note and it makes us wonder if the truck could serve as a replacement for the Santa Cruz. The company only sold 32,033 units in the United States last year and the model starts at $30,200 which is only $3,295 less than the Colorado.

Hyundai is also said to be keen on offering a version of the Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra. However, GM “hasn’t put that option on the table” and this implies it could be a big ask.

One of the vans is said to be based on the Hyundai ST1 and it would reportedly be imported from South Korea. However, the automaker is reportedly considering North American production by 2028. This could occur at either an existing plant, a contract manufacturer, or at an all-new facility. The latter would ramp up slowly, but could have an annual production capacity of more than 100,000 units by 2032.

The report goes on to say GM is expected to eliminate the aging Chevrolet Express and GMC Savana vans soon, so the Hyundai-sourced EVs could serve as their replacements. However, the threat of tariffs looms large.

Aside from vehicles for the United States, the companies are reportedly discussing the possibility of Hyundai providing GM with compact crossovers for Brazil. Unsurprisingly, it’s expected to be based on the Creta, which is built in the country.

Hyundai is also said to be considering deals that extend far beyond vehicles and include joint purchasing and development of everything from batteries to computer chips.

DENVER, Colo. – EverDriven, the leader in Alternative Student Transportation, has implemented its innovative Camera Solution within 55 school districts across 12 states since the system’s recent launch in September 2024. This nationwide rollout in Arizona, California, Colorado, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Missouri, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Texas underscores the continued demand for advanced safety technology in the student transportation industry.

The EverDriven Camera Solution securely stores high-resolution recordings for 30 days, providing extended access to both audio and high-resolution video. Capturing footage from inside the vehicle as well as exterior dashboard views of its surroundings, this solution offers a comprehensive record of each trip. All recordings are password-protected, encrypted, and accessible only to authorized personnel, ensuring maximum data protection, confidentiality, and secure review of footage while upholding student privacy.

“As a district that values student safety above all, the EverDriven Camera Solution is a game-changer for us. It ensures the safety and accountability of every ride,” said Trace Tolby, Student Transportation Director at Gilbert Public Schools in Arizona. “The transparency it provides has strengthened our relationship with EverDriven and they’ll be transporting more students for us as a result.”

The EverDriven Camera Solution is a key component of the company’s suite of cutting-edge technology tools designed to increase transparency for all stakeholders. Together, the EverDriven Camera Solution, the VIP app for parents and school staff, and the innovative District Portal solidify EverDriven’s commitment to advancing visibility in student transportation.

“Safety is at the core of everything we do at EverDriven,” said Mitch Bowling, CEO of EverDriven. “Since we launched the Camera Solution six months ago, we’ve quickly introduced this technology to districts around the country, setting a new standard for accountability in our industry. The demand underscores the critical need for advanced monitoring solutions, and as the largest Alternative Student Transportation company in the U.S. with operations in 34 states, we are committed to continually raising the bar because all students deserve a safe, secure, and reliable ride to school.”

Beyond the EverDriven Camera Solution, EverDriven prioritizes transparency to provide parents, guardians, and school staff with industry-leading visibility. The VIP app delivers driver information, estimated arrival times, and real-time trip updates through GPS technology. To protect sensitive student data, staff access is geofenced to school grounds, ensuring security while streamlining the pick-up and drop-off process.

EverDriven also provides school districts with a seamless way to manage student transportation through its innovative District Portal. Districts can conveniently request transportation, specifying schedules, pick-up and drop-off locations, and required safety equipment—all tailored to meet individual needs. This centralized platform simplifies operations and improves transparency, giving districts greater control and visibility over their transportation services.

To learn more about EverDriven and the technology solutions it provides to districts, parents/guardians, and school staff, visit https://www.everdriven.com/technology/.

About EverDriven:
With nearly 700 school district contracts and over 28,000 students served last year alone, EverDriven is the leader in safe and technology-enabled Alternative Student Transportation. Leveraging proprietary routing technology and customized transportation services, the company has been instrumental in addressing driver shortages, reducing chronic absenteeism, accommodating varying bell times, and serving unique student needs related to the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, special needs, ESSA, hard-to-serve trips, and out-of-district placements. For more information, visit www.everdriven.com.

The post EverDriven Rolls Out Camera Solution to 55 School Districts Across the U.S. appeared first on School Transportation News.

Weld County RE-3J School District in Colorado has been actively enhancing their transportation services to ensure safety, efficiency and reliability for their students. A significant aspect of this improvement involves the adoption of advanced routing and transportation management solutions provided by Transfinder, the leader in the industry.

Implementing Advanced Routing Solutions

Leading the effort is Nate Forbes, the transportation supervisor who has been with the district five years, following 16 years as a dispatch supervisor at UPS. Forbes, who’d worked overnights at UPS, made the move to school transportation so he could spend more time with his children.

Weld County RE-3J is one of the largest school districts in the state geographically, located in the largest county in the state, just 35 miles northeast of Denver. Transportation covers about 500 square miles and Forbes’ team transports 1,050 students on 14 large buses and three smaller buses.

Forbes’ move to school transportation was far from smooth.

“It was a mess of a department,” Forbes said. He wasn’t pleased with the transportation software the district was using.

At UPS, he was used to dispatching 75 drivers delivering 24,000 packages a day. When he logged into the product the Weld County district was using, it was sluggish.

“I couldn’t do it,” he said. “It was slow. The technology just wasn’t there. It took so long to zoom in on a map, to move a kid and route a kid or route that bus. I mean, it was taking me days to do what should have taken 10 to 15 minutes.”

That set him on his own journey about two years ago to find something better. He watched webinars, did some trainings, heard sales pitches, spoke with others in the industry. In total, he looked at five different companies and their products.

When he saw Transfinder’s award-winning Routefinder PLUS technology in action. One demonstration showed all the functions he was trying to do with his legacy product but couldn’t.

“You could grab a group of kids in a geographical area and it automatically routed them. You weren’t having to pick each individual student,” he said. “It was, in my opinion, very, very user friendly.”

The pieces of the puzzle then began to come together.

Standout

Asked what made Transfinder stand out from the pack, Forbes talked about the Transfinder sales team that was also “user” friendly. He didn’t feel the pressure that other companies he was dealing with were applying by overloading his inbox.

“I get turned off by that,” he said. And what Transfinder was providing was better than what he was seeing. After speaking to colleagues in the industry, reading online reviews and watching videos, it became apparent that Transfinder’s advanced routing technology was significantly better than the others.

“Just looking at map routing students, it’s just super easy,” he said. “I had a driver come in on a Wednesday and tell me that his last day was on Thursday. I cut out the route and moved those kids around and made sure parents were communicated with.” He was out of town and checked in with his team who confirmed things went smoothly.

Last year, when he hired a new secretary, Ashley Diller, he found himself out of the office during her first two weeks on the job. He encouraged Diller to look at the Transfinder Community site, to look at Routefinder 101. Between the great DIY tools in Community and the intuitiveness of PLUS, Forbes said she picked it up very quickly and could be a backup router when he wasn’t available.

The Need for Responsiveness

After turning to Routefinder PLUS, Forbes set his sights on Transfinder’s other award-winning solutions, the driver app Wayfinder and parent app Stopfinder.

“I just got everything I could get,” he said.

His previous experience with a different vendor was not so positive. “The customer service was horrible” at the district’s previous vendor, he said. On top of that, the product wasn’t reliable. Not helping things was the vendor’s constant employee turnover.

“I’d be talking to this guy and then two weeks later it’s this guy and it was just constant movement within their company. They weren’t very quick and responsive.”

He said in some cases it would take as many as eight business days before getting a call back from a previous vendor.

“When it’s a technical issue that’s too long,” he said.

Forbes said he needs responsiveness as he deals with challenges within the district. He said that, for a period of time, the district experienced dwindling enrollment but there are pockets in the district that are growing.

“That’s probably our biggest challenge,” he said.

When changing or consolidating routes, using Stopfinder to communicate with parents is extremely helpful and his staff loves the solution.

Stopfinder ‘Super Easy’ To Use

“They said, ‘This is super easy, especially with Stopfinder,’” he said, referring to informing parents of route changes. “We really have pushed that this year. They’re like, ‘This is super nice, seeing where the buses are at and getting the notifications.’”

The way to get more buy-in on the parent app was informing parents that they could find their student’s routing information through Stopfinder. He said the district constantly promoted this with parents in various communications.

“They would call the office and we would not give them their student riding information until they downloaded the app,” Forbes said. “We spent a lot of time on the phone and walking people though it. But in the long run it has made it so much better.” He estimates about 90 percent of parents are now using the app.

Forbes said Stopfinder has been a huge help keeping parents informed.

“We had a pretty big construction project that was supposed to be done in the middle of July and it didn’t wrap up until the end of September. Our buses were running late because there was no way to go,” Forbes said. “So I just sent out a quick notification saying we’re going to pick up 10 minutes early at magnet stops (subdivisions). I can see who’s reading it. I love that ability.”

He sent the notifications only to the families impacted by the construction rather than blasting to an entire route.

“Parents will tell you that they didn’t see anything and I can say, ‘You opened it at this time,’” Forbes said. “You opened it. If you didn’t read it, that’s on you.”

Parents are also good at providing feedback through the app, though sometimes, they tell him more than he needs to know.

“I think when I roll it out next year I’ll put a blurb in there saying you do not need to let me know little Johnny’s going to be out sick next Tuesday,’ Forbes said.

Viewfinder a time-saver

The district also has Viewfinder, which gives a customizable view of a district’s transportation operation. It also provides reader-only student ridership information to unlimited users, which district personnel can access to answer parent questions.

“I like it. We have a few of our secretaries who are very proficient in it and can go in and see what they need to see,” he said. “It’s saved quite a few phone calls on my end.”

Customer service

After dealing with subpar customer service from other vendors, Forbes has been amazed by the white-glove treatment he receives from Transfinder.

“The training was outstanding,” he said. “I was very, very surprised with the training. It was very, very good, very detailed. And when I had a question, even after the training, I could email the trainer and they were very responsive, very quickly.”

He said the trainer knew how to put him at ease at a stressful time planning for the new school year. He hit a “wrong” button and thought he lost two to three weeks’ worth of work just days before school starting.

“I had a moment where I thought I was going to cry. I’d panicked a little bit,” he said, laughing. “The trainer said, ‘Calm down. It’s archived.”

She brought up everything where they’d just left off. And when he has a question, he still gets responses quickly and Transfinder team members will hop on a call to walk him through something.

“My experience has been great,” he said. “I don’t know if there’s anything I would even suggest changing. It’s worked out well.”

The views expressed are those of the content sponsor and do not reflect those of School Transportation News.

The post Routefinder PLUS, Stopfinder Key Pieces of Puzzle for Colorado District appeared first on School Transportation News.

DENVER, Colo. – EverDriven, the leader in Alternative Student Transportation, announced today the addition of Adam Warner as Vice President of Field Operations for the Eastern Region of the U.S. and Head of Safety. As Vice President of Field Operations, Warner will lead operational strategy across the Eastern region, focusing on optimizing efficiencies and strengthening partnerships with school districts to ensure best-in-class operations and exceptional experiences for students and families.

As Head of Safety, Warner will spearhead EverDriven’s safety strategy and execution nationwide, reinforcing the company’s unwavering commitment to safety and advancing industry-leading safety standards.

“We’re thrilled to welcome Adam to the EverDriven team,” said Mitch Bowling, CEO of EverDriven. “Adam’s wealth of industry knowledge and leadership aligns with our mission to transform student transportation and deliver safe, reliable, and efficient rides to school. As we continue to grow our presence on the East Coast, Adam’s support will be key in achieving the highest level of service across the region.”

Warner brings more than two decades of experience in transportation, mobility, and operational leadership. In his new role, Warner will oversee EverDriven’s field operations strategy on the Eastern half of the country, ensuring that technology-driven solutions and operational excellence work together to deliver seamless transportation experiences. He will focus on strengthening relationships with school districts, enhancing EverDriven’s safety-first approach, and refining operational processes to maintain the company’s position as the industry leader.

EverDriven’s dedicated local field teams provide real-time, on-the-ground support to school districts, ensuring responsive service. Under Warner’s leadership, these teams will continue to play a vital role in maintaining strong district partnerships, proactively addressing transportation needs, and delivering a seamless experience for students and families.

Warner began his career at CarMax, where he spent 17 years in senior leadership roles, refining his expertise in operational strategy, team development, and customer-centric service delivery. He then transitioned to Lyft, where he played a key role in expanding the company’s fleet division as Regional Director of Global Operations, overseeing market growth and efficiency across the Midwest region.

Most recently, Warner served as Head of U.S. Operations at inDrive, a global ridesharing platform operating in 600+ cities across 47 countries, where he led the company’s expansion into North America and established a scalable, high-performance operational model.

“I am passionate about EverDriven’s commitment to creating opportunities for children of all backgrounds,” said Warner. “I understand the transformative power of reliable transportation in shaping a child’s future. I am committed to driving operational excellence at EverDriven, ensuring every district, parent, and student can count on us to deliver safe, seamless transportation.”

To learn more about EverDriven and how its solutions support student transportation, visit https://www.everdriven.com/.

About EverDriven:
With nearly 700 school district contracts and over 28,000 students served last year alone, EverDriven is the leader in safe and technology-enabled Alternative Student Transportation. Leveraging proprietary routing technology and customized transportation services, the company has been instrumental in addressing driver shortages, reducing chronic absenteeism, accommodating varying bell times, and serving unique student needs related to the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, special needs, ESSA, hard-to-serve trips, and out-of-district placements. For more information, visit everdriven.com.

The post EverDriven Welcomes Adam Warner as Vice President of Field Operations, Eastern Region, and Head of Safety appeared first on School Transportation News.

Texas school officials have reassured parents that school buses have not and should not be targeted by immigration enforcement actions after a district’s letter to families raised concerns.

On Feb. 5, Alice Independent School District in Texas posted a letter on its Facebook page warning parents that U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers may stop school buses to conduct immigration checks on students traveling for extracurricular activities. This caused significant concerns among parents. According to local news reports, the letter has since been deleted from the district’s Facebook page.

However, the district’s Superintendent Anysia Trevino released a second statement on Feb. 6, specifying that their previous letter was a proactive move made for student safety and not reactive to any Border Patrol incidents, as there had been none at this report.

“It is our understanding that key members of the U.S. Border Patrol have indicated that school buses and children will not be targeted,” said Trevino.

Meanwhile, Denver Public Schools in Colorado filed the nation’s first lawsuit on Wednesday against the Trump administration, specifically the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Secretary Kristi Noem, for the new policy of allowing immigration raids at schools, churches and other “sensitive” locations.

According to an Education Week report on Thursday, DPS officials said they have had to devote a lot of time and resources to adding policies that keep students safe and training faculty and staff on how to respond to claims of immigration enforcement occurring at schools.

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Related: Texas Student Transporter Utilizes Technology to Improve Operations
Related: Texas Program Enhances School Bus Safety Through Simulation Training
Related: School Districts Seek Student Protections from Immigration Enforcement
Related: U.S. Delays Tariffs with Canada, Mexico as Bus Associations Warn of Fallout

The post District Responds to Parents Fears About Immigration Raids on School Buses appeared first on School Transportation News.

DENVER, Colo. – EverDriven, the leader in Alternative Student Transportation, proudly announces its full compliance with California’s SB 88 legislation – well in advance of the July 1, 2025 deadline. Having met all requirements in January 2025, six months ahead of the deadline, EverDriven reaffirms its commitment to supporting school districts as they navigate evolving safety and operational requirements in student transportation.

Introduced by Senator Nancy Skinner in 2023, SB 88 sets new standards for student transportation in California. The legislation includes enhanced safety protocols, driver training requirements, and vehicle maintenance regulations, all designed to ensure a safer transportation system for California’s students.

“Our proactive approach to SB 88 compliance demonstrates EverDriven’s dedication to meeting the requirements and keeping every student safe,” said Morgan Judge, Senior Director of Compliance, Regulation, & Policy. “From rigorous driver education to vehicle inspections, we’ve set a new standard for student transportation excellence in California.”

EverDriven ensures SB 88 compliance by addressing key requirements:

Driver Qualifications and Education: Drivers for student transportation in California must meet or exceed the qualifications required by SB 88. Said qualifications include background checks, DMV record reviews, education in areas like student sensitivity and emergency preparedness, and tuberculosis risk assessments. Drivers are required to pass criminal background checks, obtain first aid certifications, and undergo DOT (Department of Transportation) physicals or medical examinations to verify their fitness to operate vehicles safely. EverDriven’s rigorous onboarding process ensures every driver meets all of SB 88’s qualifications and is fully prepared to provide safe and reliable transportation.

Fleet Safety and Maintenance: Vehicles must comply with California’s safety standards. EverDriven meets SB 88’s requirement that all vehicles undergo regular inspections every 12 months or 50,000 miles at a Bureau of Automotive Repair-licensed facility. In accordance with SB 88, each vehicle is equipped with a fire extinguisher and a first aid kit to reinforce EverDriven’s commitment to passenger safety.

Compliance Reporting: EverDriven provides detailed reporting on all transportation services, including driver qualifications, vehicle maintenance, and trip data. Additionally, EverDriven supplies documentation for an EPN (Employer Pull Notice) program, allowing continuous monitoring of driver records to ensure compliance and safety. This gives districts the necessary documentation to demonstrate full SB 88 compliance.

“California school districts work tirelessly to support their students, and EverDriven is proud to be a trusted partner in that mission,” said Mitch Bowling, CEO of EverDriven. “We don’t just meet SB 88 standards we exceed them, providing districts with a safe, reliable, and equitable transportation solution so they can focus on serving their students without navigating complex transportation regulations. Our network of fully vetted and qualified drivers meets the highest standards, delivering the consistency and care that every student deserves.”

To learn more about EverDriven and how its solutions support student transportation, visit https://www.everdriven.com.

About EverDriven:
With nearly 700 school district contracts and over 28,000 students served last year alone, EverDriven is the leader in safe and technology-enabled Alternative Student Transportation. Leveraging proprietary routing technology and customized transportation services, the company has been instrumental in addressing driver shortages, helping reduce chronic absenteeism, accommodating varying bell times, and serving unique student needs related to the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, special needs, ESSA, hard-to-serve trips, and out-of-district placements. For more information, visit everdriven.com.

The post EverDriven Announces Senate Bill 88 Compliance in California Six Months Before Deadline appeared first on School Transportation News.

This story was originally published by Canary Media.

California has long led the way on electric vehicles, but another Western state is challenging the Golden State’s top spot.

Between July and September, nearly 25 percent of the vehicles registered in Colorado were electric or plug-in hybrids. In California, that figure was just over 24 percent. It’s not enough to crown Colorado the new undisputed leader in EVs, but it’s a notable milestone — no other state has ever surpassed California in terms of EV registrations, according to James Di Filippo, principal policy analyst at Atlas Public Policy.

It’s the culmination of a ​“pretty dramatic” trend line for Colorado’s EV adoption since the start of 2023, Di Filippo said. Coloradans bought just over 41,000 EVs last year, up from roughly 23,000 in 2022.

Governor Jared Polis, a Democrat, announced the accomplishment last week, touting it as a sign of the state’s commitment to reaching its climate goals and improving air quality. ​“This new data shows that demand for EVs continues to increase and especially with competitive state and federal rebates, drastically cutting the cost of an EV and saving people money,” Polis said in a press release.

Colorado has some of the most generous incentives for EV sales in the country, Di Filippo said. Its policies and incentives have helped make the cars more affordable, while the state’s investments in charging infrastructure have made owning an electric car more practical.

All Coloradans can receive a $5,000 state tax credit for purchasing or leasing a new EV or plug-in hybrid priced up to $80,000. That credit is available through the end of this year, then will decrease to $3,500 starting in 2025. EVs valued under $35,000 are eligible for an additional tax credit of $2,500 — for a total potential state credit of $7,500.

Through the Vehicle Exchange Colorado program, income-qualified residents can trade in old or highly polluting gas cars in exchange for a $6,000 rebate to put toward a new EV or plug-in hybrid purchase or lease, or $4,000 for a used one.

The state tax credits and the vehicle-exchange rebates can be combined with federal tax credits, which currently offer up to $7,500 for a new EV lease or purchase or $4,000 for a used EV.

The state has also worked over the past few years to install more public chargers. There are currently over 5,500 public charging ports across Colorado. This year, the state plans to install another 576 ports using $5 million in funding from the Colorado Energy Office.

In 2020, the U.S. Energy Information Administration projected that 580,000 zero-emission vehicles would be sold in the U.S. in 2023. But actual sales last year were almost two and a half times greater at 1.43 million. This year, Cox Automotive expects sales to climb even higher, despite gloomy forecasts issued by some analysts earlier in 2024.

According to estimates from Kelley Blue Book, EV sales made up 8.9 percent of all vehicle sales in the country in the third quarter of this year — the highest share ever recorded, and an increase from 7.8 percent in the same time period last year.

The Biden administration set a goal for EVs to make up half of all new vehicle sales by 2030. As of this February, sales were on track to meet that goal, though the picture is more uncertain heading into the second Trump administration. The president-elect reportedly plans to eliminate federal EV tax credits and roll back Environmental Protection Agency tailpipe emissions rules — against the wishes of the nation’s largest automakers, including Ford, General Motors, and Stellantis.

Transportation is the single largest category of carbon emissions in the country, at 28 percent, driven mainly by trucks, SUVs, and other road vehicles.

Colorado has an even more aggressive EV goal than the federal government, aiming for 82 percent of all car sales to be electric by 2032. Looking ahead, EV registrations and sales in the state likely won’t continue to outpace California, Di Filippo said, since ​“the trend line for California is still steeper overall.”

“This isn’t necessarily a story of Colorado just beating California out right,” he said. ​“This is really a story of EV success.” 

Which state is rivaling California on EV leadership? Colorado is an article from Energy News Network, a nonprofit news service covering the clean energy transition. If you would like to support us please make a donation.