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District reports SmartTag rollout and plans Gold Star renewal; CPI increase set at 1.4% for next year
Summary
District transportation staff told trustees April 28 that SmartTag student ID scanning is implemented districtwide and that staff will present a Gold Star Transit renewal for consideration in May while preparing a fall RFP for transportation services.
District transportation staff told trustees April 28 that SmartTag student ID scanning is implemented districtwide and that the district will bring a contract renewal with Gold Star Transit to the May board meeting while preparing a fall RFP for transportation services.
Transportation staff said the SmartTag system was fully deployed across the district by the winter break. The district printed a little over 11,000 tags for students who registered for transportation and reported that about 8,000–9,000 students ride buses on a typical day. The presenter said SmartTag reduced reliance on manual data entry, gives parents near-real-time route tracking and creates an electronic check for loading and unloading, but it also introduced a learning curve for some drivers and students and can slow boarding when many students do not present a tag.
“Every student that that is signed up for transportation services doesn't ride the bus every day...we printed, a little over 11,000 tags,” the transportation presenter said, summarizing the district’s use figures.
On the vendor contract, the district said the current Gold Star agreement began Sept. 1, 2021, with an initial three‑year term and two one‑year renewals. The contract provides for an annual Consumer Price Index adjustment based on the Dallas–Fort Worth CPI. The most recent CPI figure for the market was 1.4 percent; Gold Star agreed to apply the 1.4% increase rather than the up-to‑2% increase it could have pursued under a contract clause, a staff member told the board. District staff estimated the contract increase for 2025–26 at roughly $109,000.
Staff said they will return to the board in May with a proposed renewal for the 2025–26 year and will issue a request for proposals this fall for providers that can serve a district of EMSISD’s size; staff also said they will analyze possible in‑house transportation as part of the procurement process.
Board members raised operational concerns about boarding time, monitors on buses and students forgetting tags; staff said they can produce exception reports showing wrong-stop or manually-scanned events and will provide campuses with lists of habitual manual scans so schools can follow up with families.
The board did not take immediate contract action at the April 28 meeting; staff said a formal renewal agreement will come to the May meeting for board consideration.
