Transportation Cost Cutting Ideas Michael F. Detwiler, Sr. Great Valley School District PASBO Conference March 2011

Cost Reduction ▪E▪Efficiency ▪C▪Cost avoidance ▪R▪Revenue enhancement

IT IS TIME TO THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX “This is the way we have always done it” is no longer the norm! We need to be creative.

Reduce Your Fuel Costs Fuel costs are expected to continue to rise.  Look to reduce the number of bus stops.  Each bus stop uses ¼ to ½ gallon of fuel.  Enforce the anti-idling law.  Consider installing plug-in stations for your buses. The cost of electric is less expensive then the fuel for cold starts.  Eliminate going into devolvement's where possible. This will reduce your fuel costs and also give you more time on the route and it may be possible to add additional stops with the additional time and eliminate a bus.  Consider a county wide bid consortium for fuel. You may get a lower price due to the amount of fuel being purchased. Purchase tax exempt fuel for contractors to reduce contract cost.

BELL TIMES BELL TIMES  Consider adjusting your schools’ bell times to give your buses more time. This may allow you to tier your routes and eliminate some buses.

Tier Your Routes??????????  Can you tier your routes?  Run #1 HS  Run #2 MS  Run #3 Elementary.

Consider A Transfer System Split your district into zones. Use one bus in each zone to pick-up students for multiple non-public schools. These buses will then meet at a location in your district and do a transfer. You can then use these buses to transport students to multiple schools. This is more efficient than a separate bus for each non-public school. It is not possible to transfer all of your non- public schools but you may be surprised at how many you can do.

Student Ride Time On The Bus  What is your district’s allowable ride time ?  Consider increasing the ride time. This may allow you to combine bus routes with the additional time.

Mid-day Kindergarten Service  If you are providing midday kindergarten service, check the ridership and consider eliminating it if it is not being utilized by parents.  If you eliminate this service you are not required to provide this service to any non- public school.

HELLO, HELLO ANY ONE SLEEPING OR ANY EYES GLAZED OVER?

Look At Your Cost For Early Dismissals  Consider eliminating early dismissals. If your district has no scheduled early dismissals you do not have to provide any to your non- public schools. The cost of providing this service, including the fuel, may surprise you.

Late Runs  If you are providing late buses you need to consider the use versus the cost. This has always been an extra but can you afford this now?  You do not have to offer late buses to non-public schools if your public schools do not have late buses.

Regular Checks  Do you regularly evaluate your bus routes for efficiency and safety? Changes in student demographics may make it possible to combine routes and thus eliminate a bus or a change in the stop order to make the route as efficient as possible.

Parent Contracts and Sharing Service Parent Contracts and Sharing Service  Do you have any routes that service just one school for only one or two students? Would a parent contract be more cost effective? Try sharing with neighboring districts and split the cost.

Routing Software  Do you utilize a transportation routing software program? The use of a routing program may help you be more efficient and may show a cost savings. Work to decrease your empty miles. The repayment for the cost of the software can be recovered quickly because of improved efficiency.

District Owned Versus Contractor  If you are currently a district owned operation you may want to put out an RFP for contracted services and compare the costs.  If you already are contracting out your transportation, consider re-bidding your services at the end of your current contract. You may find another service provider who may be cheaper. If you just re-negotiate, you will never know if you are getting the lowest cost possible.

Waste Oil To Heat  Consider installing a waste oil heater in your garage.  The average amount of oil from an oil change is 5.75 gallons. A 170,000 BTU waste oil heater uses on average of 1 ¼ gallons of waste oil per hour. This is also a green way to dispose of waste oil and save money.

Sports Playoff Transportation  Use a school bus rather than a coach bus for playoff sporting events.  If time and distance do not dictate it, a school bus will be cheaper. It will not be as comfortable or as nice as a motor coach but will save money.

District Owned Bus Replacement  Bus replacement provision based on mileage, not age. Today’s buses are better made than buses in the past and have a longer life span with the right maintenance.

Fuel Monitoring System  Consider buying a computerized fuel station monitoring system such as Gas Boy. This will allow you to check your MPG on your buses. If you see low MPG on a bus this could be due to a mechanical problem or excessive idling etc. You can also track the gallons used for each route and see the increase or decrease of fuel used when changes to the route are made.

A True Example Of Cost Savings Please welcome Mr. Christopher Gray, Assistant Transportation Manager for the West Chester Area School District. His district has made many changes to cut their transportation costs.

What Are You Doing? These are just some suggestions that may work for you. I am sure there are other changes that you have made that have not been covered. Please share with the group. Keep Thinking Outside The Box If you need any additional information or have questions please feel free to me