Transportation Services is announcing its first round of bus route updates on Thursday. The changes will impact 445 routes with families being notified via SchoolMessenger. 

These adjustments result from the department’s continued focus to increase route efficiency, as well as its efforts to process new requests for bus service and route and stop changes. Changes to routes are not uncommon at the start of the school year and mostly involve minor adjustments to stop times.  

This year, Transportation Services will be making route update announcements on Thursdays, as needed, with changes to take effect the following Monday. The announcements distributed Thursday will take effect immediately after Labor Day on Tuesday, Sept. 3. 

Because of the structure of the routing system, any changes to a route result in notification to all students assigned to that route — even those whose stop time and location is not impacted. As a result, some parents may receive a notice even though their student’s route and stop remain the same. Others may receive a notice with just a slight difference in stop time. 

Student transportation requests are submitted by the school. Once Transportation Services receives the request and determines the student is eligible for service, a route is identified, and the student is assigned to it. This process typically takes seven to 10 days.  

Parents are encouraged to submit any questions or concerns via Let’s Talk!, an easy-to-use online platform that streamlines communication by providing a central location where they can submit feedback, track inquiries, get quick answers, and rate our service. Parents can also download the new SafeStop GPS bus-tracking app, which allows them to follow their student’s bus along its route.