In an effort to cut costs and reduce the time students spend on buses, officials with Houston ISD announced July 22 a series of changes to bus routes that will go into effect for the first day of the 2024-25 school year on Aug. 12.
The changes will affect the bus routes and pickup points for roughly 3,000 students enrolled in the district's school choice program.
The context
Students at HISD are assigned to attend certain schools based on what attendance boundary their home address falls within. HISD's school choice program allows families to apply to have their child enrolled in a school outside of their assigned boundary.
Roughly 115 schools are part of HISD's school choice program, including magnet schools, dual language schools, international baccalaureate schools and military academies.
District officials estimate roughly 9,000 students rely on the bus system to get to and from campuses, including 6,000 zoned students and 3,000 school choice students.
The latest
In the July 22 announcement, officials announced that:
- The number of total bus routes will be reduced from 508 routes in the 2023-24 school year to an estimated 423 routes in the 2024-25 school year. The district will not reduce the number of bus drivers.
- Routes have been realigned in a way that reduces the average one-way bus ride for a student from one hour and 45 minutes in 2023-24 to one hour and 15 minutes in 2024-25.
- Buses will on average make fewer stops and carry more students.
- The district will save around $3 million by streamlining routes, part of a broader effort to cut $16 million from annual transportation costs.
Students who attend zoned schools and students who are enrolled in HISD special education programs—around two-thirds of students that ride buses—will not be affected by the changes, officials said.
For the remaining 3,000 students enrolled in school choice programs, assigned bus stops will now be located within a three-mile radius of each students' home, up from a two-mile radius last year. Most of those students will be assigned a stop at their zoned high school or middle school, while some students may be assigned stops at community centers or libraries nearby.
All bus stop assignments are meant to ensure students won't have to cross dangerous roads, officials said.
Community Impact has reached out to the district on how it defines a dangerous road and the extent to which they were able to ensure no student had to cross one, but has not heard back as of Aug. 2.
Also of note
HISD takes on the process of analyzing and adjusting bus routes each year before the new school year starts, said Alexandra Elizondo, the district's chief of public affairs and communications. Some other students may see bus route changes as a part of the standard review, though Elizondo said she could not give an exact number.
The cost
In a July 23 news conference, Elizondo said the process of analyzing bus routes began at the beginning of the 2023-24 school year.
"The takeaway was the bus routes before were not well planned and not efficient," she said. "HISD wants to make sure that every child has the shortest amount of time on the bus as possible."
The changes are meant to make the system more efficient and cut back from the $56 million spent on transportation infrastructure in 2023-24, Elizondo said.
Officials are aiming to reduce transportation infrastructure costs by a total of $10 million by the end of the 2024-25 school year, and by $16 million by the end of the 2025-26 school year.
The bus streamlining will save an estimated $3 million, while additional savings are expected to come from improvements to how HISD dispatches and manages buses, according to a July 22 news release. Elizondo said more information of those efforts will be released at a later date.
What's next
Officials said information on specific bus routes would be sent to families for the 2024-25 school year before the end of July. Families can search bus route information by address on the HISD website.
Families with questions or concerns about their routes will have access to a transportation helpline, according to a July 22 news release.
