Transportation

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.
A new rule from the Environmental Protection Agency sets higher fuel efficiency standards for heavy-duty vehicles. By 2032, it projects, 40 percent of new medium heavy-duty vehicles, including school buses, will be electric.
Business Wire via AP
Federal Electric School Buses Get a Boost From New State and Federal Policies
New federal standards for emissions could accelerate the push to produce buses that run on clean energy.
Mark Lieberman, April 2, 2024
3 min read
Yellow electric school bus plugged in at a charging station.
Thomas W Farlow/iStock/Getty
School & District Management Electric Buses Hit Some Road Bumps, But They're Still Catching On
The number of electric school buses is rising—and there’s no shortage of growing pains involving funding, legal mandates, and operations.
Mark Lieberman, February 26, 2024
8 min read
Photo of rescue workers and turned over school bus.
Brandy Taylor / iStock / Getty Images Plus
School Climate & Safety Are School Buses Safe? An Expert Explains
A perennial concern is getting new attention.
Elizabeth Heubeck, February 12, 2024
4 min read
Buses parked covered with snow
iStock/Getty
Budget & Finance Bus Contracts: The Pros and Cons for School Districts Outsourcing Transportation
Districts see more predictable costs and get valuable expertise, but high costs send some back to an in-house model.
Mark Lieberman, December 11, 2023
1 min read
School buses parked in Helena, Mont., ahead of the beginning of the school year on Aug. 20, 2021.
Some districts are pulling back on decisions to outsource bus services in an effort to save money and improve service.
Iris Samuels/AP
School & District Management Late Arrivals, Steep Costs: Why Some Districts Ditch Third-Party Bus Companies
Districts are facing a host of transportation challenges. Some have addressed them by deciding to bring buses back in house.
Mark Lieberman, November 30, 2023
6 min read
110223 bikebus SM BS
Sam Mallon/Education Week
Student Well-Being Video The Bike Bus: A Weekly Parade With Huge Benefits for Students
This alternative mode of transportation has huge benefits for students, and only requires five components to make it happen.
Kaylee Domzalski & Sam Mallon, November 2, 2023
3:25
Photograph of a school bus loading children on a busy road.
Greg Randles/iStock
Ed-Tech Policy FCC: Schools Can Use E-Rate Funds to Cover WiFi on Buses
The change will help students with long commutes to and from school study and complete homework, supporters say.
Alyson Klein, October 19, 2023
2 min read
Randal Lutz, superintendent of Baldwin-Whitehall school district near Pittsburgh and a soon-to-be certified school bus driver, climbs aboard a bus prior to dismissal.
Randal Lutz, superintendent of Baldwin-Whitehall School District in Pittsburgh and soon-to-be certified school bus driver, climbs aboard a bus prior to dismissal.
Photo courtesy of Randal Lutz
School & District Management Why This Superintendent Is Taking the School Bus Driver Shortage Into His Own Hands
This school leader is hoping to reverse his district's shortage of bus drivers, by becoming one.
Elizabeth Heubeck, October 12, 2023
5 min read
Crossing guard Pamela Lane waves at a school bus passing her intersection as she crosses students going to Bluford Elementary School on Sept. 5, 2023, in Philadelphia.
Crossing guard Pamela Lane waves at a school bus passing her intersection near Bluford Elementary School on Sept. 5, 2023, in Philadelphia.
Alejandro A. Alvarez/The Philadelphia Inquirer via AP
School & District Management What's Stopping Later School Start Times That Support Teen Sleep? Bus Schedules, for One
See practical strategies for districts looking to move start times to accommodate teen sleep schedules.
Elizabeth Heubeck, September 28, 2023
5 min read
Collage of school bus, cars, stop sign and a neighborhood map.
Laura Baker/Education Week via Canva
School Climate & Safety Let's Talk About When Cars Need to Stop for School Buses
A refresher course on the rules of the road involving stopped school buses.
Caitlynn Peetz, September 18, 2023
1 min read
Photograph of a school bus driving down a road surrounded by fall foliage
E+/Getty
School & District Management The 'Amazon Effect' Is Fueling Bus Driver Shortages. How Schools Keep the Wheels Turning
Delivery jobs have attracted some would-be bus drivers away from schools, making it more difficult to transport students.
Evie Blad, August 16, 2023
5 min read
A line of yellow buses passes through a parking lot.
Jefferson County Public Schools school buses makes their way through the Detrick Bus Compound on the first day of school on Aug. 9, 2023, in Louisville, Ky. Kentucky’s largest school system called off six days of school after a disastrous overhaul of the transportation system that left some children on buses until almost 10 p.m. on opening day.
Jeff Faughender/Courier Journal via AP
School & District Management A District's Bus 'Disaster' Highlights a Nationwide Driver Shortage
A transportation meltdown caused a district to cancel six days of classes as schools nationwide struggle to hire enough bus drivers.
Evie Blad, August 15, 2023
5 min read
Illustration of gears
iStock / Getty Images Plus
School & District Management AI Could Save School Districts Time and Money—If They Use It Correctly
Technology experts believe artificial intelligence tools could help districts on everything from facilities to recruitment.
Mark Lieberman, August 10, 2023
7 min read
Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent Alberto M. Carvalho, center, joins student performers on stage after delivering his Opening of Schools Address at the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles on Aug. 4, 2023.
Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent Alberto M. Carvalho, center, joins student performers on stage after delivering his Opening of Schools Address at the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles on Aug. 4, 2023.
Luis Sinco/Los Angeles Times via TNS
School & District Management AI Chatbot 'Ed' Will Be L.A. Unified's Newest Student Adviser, Superintendent Says
Superintendent Alberto Carvalho also repeated his pledge to bring about full academic recovery from the pandemic within two years.
Howard Blume, Los Angeles Times, August 7, 2023
5 min read