SCHENECTADY, N.Y. & AUSTIN, TEXAS — Saddled with a massive school bus driver shortage, the Houston Independent School District has turned to Transfinder Corp., the nation’s leading school bus routing company, to implement the significant transportation changes that the district wants to roll out during the 2018-19 school year.
With more than 200,000 students spread out over 301 square miles, Houston ISD is the seventh largest district in the country. When Houston ISD hired Transfinder, the district was down 150 school bus drivers, had experienced a change in leadership in the transportation department, while most of its 280-plus schools had similar start times that limited buses to single trips.
Transfinder’s routing solutions and service team provided the district with a number of options to consider to remedy these and other issues. The district then turned to Transfinder to implement its desired course of action, which will go into effect this school year, beginning August 27.
Key initiatives the district is implementing this year include:
- Creating hub locations at magnet schools to drop off or pick up students
- Ensuring students riding Houston ISD buses take only their assigned routes
- Standardizing bell times to create a two-tiered service pattern
By implementing these changes, Houston ISD anticipates savings in the long-term as a result of using its buses more efficiently, and either retiring buses, or forgoing the purchase of additional buses as a result.
“This has been a monumental project that the Houston Independent School District has undertaken,” said Antonio Civitella, Transfinder’s president and CEO. “We have worked very closely with the district to provide (it) with all the necessary data to make the most informed decisions. We then came alongside the district to provide them with the tools and support to put (its) plans in place. The district has been informing the community that major changes are coming that will ultimately make the transportation of their students more efficient and safer.”
Transfinder has a strong presence in Texas, with more than 150 districts as clients. These include: Cypress-Fairbanks ISD, Fort Bend ISD, Fort Worth ISD and North East ISD. Transfinder opened its first satellite office in Austin in 2015. A year later, Transfinder received the Austin Chamber of Commerce’s Customer Service Award.
About Transfinder Corp.
Founded in 1988 and headquartered in Schenectady, N.Y., Transfinder is a national leader in intelligent transportation systems, providing transportation management systems and services to school districts, municipalities and adult care facilities. Transfinder, an Inc. magazine “fastest-growing company” for the past 11 straight years, has offices in Austin, Texas and Shanghai, China. The software company develops and supports routing and scheduling solutions for optimal transportation logistics for clients in North America and the Middle East. www.transfinder.com
