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Transportation director reports fleet renewal, Transfinder ID rollout and improved on‑time performance
Summary
Transportation director (referred to in the transcript as Mr. B) told the board the district has increased the share of buses under five years old from 19% to 57%, eliminated reliance on most leased buses and is deploying Transfinder tablets and student ID cards to track boarding and drop‑off in real time.
The district’s transportation director, identified in the transcript as Mr. B, gave a comprehensive update on fleet replacement, route restructuring and a technology rollout intended to improve student accountability and parent communications.
Mr. B said the district increased its owned yellow‑fleet buses from 21 to 23 and reduced lease dependence, raising the share of buses less than five years old from 19% in 2023 to 57% now. He said the district retired buses with extremely high mileage and acquired conventional 84‑passenger buses for routes serving the southern portion of the district.
To reduce overcrowding and improve trip reliability, the department added routes (19 mainstream routes plus activity runs) and adjusted routes so buses serving distant communities no longer stop at the central hub, reducing travel time for remote students.
On technology, Mr. B described the Transfinder rollout: each driver will receive a tablet that provides turn‑by‑turn directions and stop‑level passenger counts; students will scan ID cards on boarding and disembarking so dispatchers can confirm who boarded or alighted. He said the district will provide the first ID free and implement online replacement payments via an online vendor beginning in January. “We will be able to tell [parents] yes or no” when asked whether a child boarded the bus that morning, he said.
Drivers and dispatchers now overlap shifts to ensure full customer‑service coverage; Mr. B said the department has avoided route cancellations and maintained on‑time performance above 98%. He also noted maintenance improvements (warranty management and better recordkeeping) and asked the board to consider buying two replacement buses this year to keep the replacement cycle on schedule.
Why it matters: reliable transportation and student tracking are central to attendance and safety—Transfinder IDs and real‑time monitoring aim to give parents, schools and dispatch immediate information and reduce missed pickups or disputed drop‑offs.
What’s next: Mr. B asked the board to approve procurement requests for two buses and to authorize implementation steps for Transfinder and the ID policy, including the free first ID and an online replacement option starting January.
