Student Transportation Software: Costs Versus Benefits

School districts across the country are struggling to determine how to best utilize the limited number of dollars that are available to them. As these districts face sharp increases in expenses, revenue is decreasing, forcing them to be tight with resources in order to keep budgets balanced.

For some districts, this means cutting necessary services including student transportation. Along with reducing transportation for field trips and extracurricular programs, many districts are reducing the number of buses in their fleets and drivers on their payrolls. So what solutions are available to districts feeling the crunch?

Cost Versus Benefits for Student Transportation Software

Some school districts are turning to student transportation software to help ease the financial burdens of their transportation departments. As budgets are slashed, there is a greater demand for accountability and district administrators must be able to show a positive return on investment anytime software is purchased. Fortunately, student transportation software is designed with cost saving in mind.

Specialized route optimization software, in particular, can help school districts to keep their transportation budgets under control. This software often pays for itself and then some, due to the following benefits:

• Minimization of the number of buses needed to transport students, which reduces staffing and maintenance costs.
• Lowering of fuel costs due to more efficient stop placement, more efficient routes and reduced idle time.
• Pre-planning capabilities, which allows administrators to better plan for expenses.
• Risk management benefits, which can lower insurance premiums.
• Ease of reporting, making full reimbursement by Department of Education easier.

Along with the cost-saving benefits, school bus transportation offers a key advantage to school districts. This software helps to keep students safe and ease the minds of parents, teachers and administrators. By planning routes that avoid traffic and safety hazards, both expenses and risks are reduced.

To learn more about the cost-saving benefits of transportation software, contact the school transportation specialists at BusBoss. We’d be happy to provide you with details on our programs and their economic benefits, along with a live demo.

Have budget cuts affected your school district’s transportation department? How have you dealt with these changes? How has student transportation software factored in to your student transportation decisions? We appreciate your comments and feedback.