TSPR Audit Protocols - Transportation

Transportation is a vital support service that demands sound management due to the large capital investment in bus fleets and annual expenditures required for maintenance and operation. The goal of any school transportation operation is to timely transport students safely to and from school and other school related activities. Although numerous state regulations govern transportation services, districts have the flexibility of establishing procedures that can enhance operations such as setting bell schedules, designing efficient routes and establishing sound maintenance procedures.
This module examines the transportation program focusing on monitoring factors affecting transportation, bus replacement and vehicle maintenance programs, driver recruitment and training, driver and passenger safety, service evaluation and purchasing procedures.

I. Transportation Policies, Procedures, Operations and Staffing

The aim of an effective transportation service delivery system must be to deliver safe, timely and efficient transport to all district students. The absolute paramount importance of safety and timeliness requires no explanation. The concern over efficiency, while of a second order of importance, must be vigorously pursued in order to free additional resources for use in classroom instruction.
Data Needs

Policies and procedures
Bus routings
Maintenance records
Bus fleet records
Annual transportation report
Transportation information systems
Transportation outsourcing feasibility studies and request for proposals
Copies of contracts, if services are privatized
Job descriptions, salaries and wages of transportation employees
Staffing by category and location
Training/certification records of transportation employees
Vehicle accident or vandalism reports
Results of student and parent surveys

Possible People to Interview
Superintendent
Assistant superintendent with assigned responsibility, if applicable
Transportation director
Principals/campus-based personnel
Bus drivers
Mechanics
Training coordinators
Transportation vendors, if applicable
I.A. Organization and Staffing
Activities to Perform

I.A.1 Examine the organization and staffing charts and job descriptions for all transportation related functions including vehicle maintenance and parts ordering and warehousing. Interview staff to determine reporting arrangements, whether the organizational structure depicted on the chart reflects the actual organization of the department, and document if it has been changed recently or repeatedly in the recent past or is anticipated to change in the near future. Explain the reasons for any changes.

I.A.2 Examine the staffing including substitute drivers, and budgets of transportation and transportation related functions and determine appropriate staffing ratios within the function such as mechanics to total buses in the fleet, etc. Evaluate whether the budget and staffing level compares favorably to industry standards.

I.A.3 Prepare a chart showing the salary rates and ranges for each position within the transportation function, and the budgeted or actual overtime worked by each position type stated in hours and/or dollars, as appropriate. Compare salary rates to industry standards and note any areas where consistent, excessive overtime is being used.

I.A.4 Prepare a list, by position, of all staff development or certifications provided and/or required at time of hire, at orientation, annually and at other intervals. Show whether that training is provided in-house or by contract and the approximate contract cost.

Questions to Ask
Does the district have an adequate number of drivers to run regular routes? Is the number of backup drivers sufficient to cover the average number of absent drivers? What other staff are licensed to drive buses and how often are they called upon to run routes? How does that impact their ability to do their normal work? How does this practice impact overtime rates?
How are drivers and mechanics recruited? Are these recruitment activities tracked to determine which are most successful? How is the human resources office involved in the recruitment process? In the hiring process? Are processes in place to ensure that criminal history checks are done before drivers come in contact with students? Are criminal history checks done periodically to determine that new events would not make a driver ineligible for student contact?
Who drives for field trips? Who schedules field trips? Who drives for extracurricular trips? Who schedules extracurricular trips? Is scheduling done so as to minimize overtime costs?
Is the district’s staffing levels comparable to districts of similar size and linear density? What staffing formulas does the district use to ensure the efficiency of staff?
Do drivers and mechanics receive adequate supervision? What is the span of control? Who is responsible for evaluating drivers? Do the evaluators ride with the drivers to assess performance? Are surveillance cameras used in buses to observe driver performance? Does the supervisor follow drivers periodically to observe driving skills and adherence to district policies and procedures?
Who handles preventive maintenance on vehicles? Who responds to emergency calls like flat tires, break downs, etc.?
When drivers are having problems, who do they turn to for help? When a mechanic is uncertain of how to proceed with a repair, to whom can they turn for assistance?
How do employee turnover rates compare to peer districts, regional and state averages? Are employee compensation rates competitive with peer districts, regional, and state averages? Does the district provide a benefits program that is comparable with other districts, particularly surrounding/area districts? Is there a relationship between compensation package and turnover rates? How does the district track the reasons employees leave the district? What other factors are affecting turnover rates?
Is training provided for all transportation staff on an annual basis? Are transportation staff provided in-service training on changing laws, requirements and procedures? Who provides the training? Does appropriate staff attend regional seminars?
What in-service activities are provided for drivers? What driver training has required attendance? Are drivers of special education students receiving training in the needs of the special students? What types of training do drivers receive in student communication and discipline? Are bilingual drivers used for bilingual routes? Are trained substitute drivers available? What specific training is given to substitutes?
How many hours of initial training do newly hired bus drivers receive? How many hours of ongoing training do established bus drivers receive per year? What types of training are provided, and how does it compare to that suggested in the Texas Administrative Code?
I.B. Policies and Procedures

I.B.1 Compile all board-approved policies and administrative procedures that relate to transportation, transportation routes and schedules as well as any policies or procedures that are unique to transportation personnel. Examine the content to determine if they are consistent and comprehensive; note any discrepancies. Further, to the extent possible, determine how these policies or procedures impact the effectiveness and efficiency of the transportation operation.

Question to Ask
By policy, what children are transported to and from school in the district? What routes are run that are not reimbursed by the state?
Do any policies or procedures establish a maximum amount of time that regular education students should be on a bus? Special education students? Does policy or procedure prescribe when an aide is provided on a bus?
With regards to special education transportation services how does the Transportation Department communicate with ARD committees? Does the district apply least restrictive environment rules to transportation? If such aides are employed, which department compensates them? What procedures exist in order to ensure the safety of special education children? What policies or procedures discuss transportation of special education students to and from locations where they receive special services, such as transportation to and from physical therapy?
Are district policies relating to transportation of students to and from Career and Technology education classes either at another school or to a college or university where the course is offered?
Are any students in the district charged for transportation costs? If so, who? Under what circumstances? What is the charge? Does the charge match the cost of transportation? Is this process documented in district policy?
Does the district allow external groups such as non-profit organizations to use or charter school buses? If so, who? Under what circumstances? What is the charge? Does the charge match the cost of transportation? Is this process documented in district policy?
Does board policy clearly define hazardous routes that would not otherwise be eligible for reimbursement from the state? What procedure is in place to ensure that routes are reviewed regularly to identify hazardous routes?
Do procedures outline the student count process? Do the count procedures comply with TEA requirements? Does the count procedure ensure that the district accurately captures information on ridership?
What policies or procedures address appropriate student behavior on a bus? Student misbehavior or vandalism? Grounds for removal from a bus? Grounds for termination of transportation privileges? Are students and parents required to sign a transportation agreement acknowledging acceptable behavior guidelines? What due process is provided if parents protest the district’s disciplinary actions?
Does the district have locally developed and approved policies for handling student or parent complaints?
How does the administration ensure that board policies are followed and incorporated into day-to-day operating procedures?
Do any policies address busload capacity? Are all students required to wear seatbelts? To sit two or three to a seat? Can students stand on the bus when seats are not available?
How does policy or procedure stipulate how charges are to be assessed to departmental or program budgets for special trips? Are campuses allowed to charter special buses from external entities if the cost is lower than the district’s cost from providing those services? When there are no district buses available to handle the trip?
Does district policy establish a replacement policy for school buses? How often, or at what intervals are buses to be replaced in the district?
Do any procedures or policies require an analysis of long term transportation costs when choosing sites for new schools? When redrawing attendance zone boundaries? When setting bell times for schools? When opening magnet school programs? When considering open enrollment or school choice policies? When setting or changing field trip budgets?
Has the district established requirements and guidelines governing the use of private vehicles for transporting students on district business including: Proof of insurance? Guidelines for use which are outlined and provided to drivers? Verification of qualifications to drive?
Does the district have policies designed to reduce absenteeism? How does the district evaluate the effectiveness of those policies?
What are the procedures for reporting an accident? An accident with injuries? How does the administration monitor compliance with these procedures? Do mechanics note unreported damage to buses when they are conducting preventive maintenance?
I.C. Operations
Activities to Perform

I.C.1 Using reports from the Texas Education Agency for the last three to five years, compare the number of riders, regular education transportation cost per mile, the special education transportation cost per mile, the regular education transportation cost per rider, and the special education transportation cost per rider of the district to peer districts and state and regional averages.

I.C.2 Compile annual operations and performance data for regular and special education routes, including the number of daily student riders, the number of miles driven, the operations cost and the daily cost per student rider. Track trends in Transportation costs (operations costs for both regular and special education transportation, annual miles for both regular and special education, and cost per mile for both regular and special education) over five years. Track trends in transportation costs (salaries and benefits, purchased/contracted services, supplies and materials, other expenses). Track the amount of route mileage, extracurricular mileage, other mileage, and gross annual mileage over 5 years.

I.C.3 Compile data concerning arrival and departure times and determine the on-time performance of the district’s bus service.

I.C.4 Examine all school bus or other district vehicle accident reports for the last year and determine whether trends exist. If trends are discovered, interview staff to determine what action the district has taken to reverse those trends.

Questions to Ask
How does the district monitor factors affecting transportation costs such as increases in enrollment? Decreases in enrollment? Closure of schools? Opening of school(s) in new attendance area(s)? Number of new students in a geographic area without a school? Boundary changes? Organizational changes (i.e., addition of middle schools)? School-to-school transportation due to over enrollment in a building? The cost per pupil for transportation? Periodic criminal record and driver record checks for both regular and substitute drivers?
Do the district's operating procedures for transportation reflect the use of scheduling; routing and automated tools for the purpose of improved efficiency and cost effectiveness? Does the district use a computerized routing and scheduling system? Is each bus and driver dual or triple routed? Are bell schedules staggered sufficiently to provide for multiple use of buses and drivers? What activities has the district used to improve its linear density group for regular routes and thereby increase the state’s reimbursement rates? How does the district group special education routes to achieve efficiency?
How are transportation services evaluated to determine overall effectiveness and efficiency? Does the district review routing, loading and scheduling annually looking for ways of increasing efficiency and cost effectiveness?
With regards to safety, how many accidents have district buses been involved with during the previous school year? What percentage of these accidents did the district classify as preventable and/or non-preventable? How does the district track and monitor accidents? What procedures exist for dealing with drivers involved in preventable accidents? Are drivers with multiple accidents terminated or retrained?

III. Vehicle Maintenance and Replacement

The maintenance and replacement of school buses impacts the safety of students and for the department budget. Analysts must therefore carefully examine upkeep and vehicle turnover issues.
Data Needs

Federal, state and local laws, rules and regulations
Policies and procedures
Preventive maintenance records/schedules and repair history files
Deferred maintenance/repairs log
Work orders or repair orders
Bus and vehicle fleet records, including fleet inventory and miles reports and vehicle usage reports
Daily bus check logs (if applicable)
Fuel purchase and usage reports
Equipment/parts inventory lists and replacement plans
Automated vehicle maintenance information systems records (if applicable)
Location of maintenance and parts storage facilities (if applicable)
Job descriptions of maintenance employees
Maintenance employees’ training/certification records
Environmental compliance records

Possible People to Interview:
Transportation director (if appropriate reporting line)
Maintenance director or supervisor
Mechanics
Bus drivers
Training coordinators
Maintenance Vendors, if applicable
II.A. Vehicle Maintenance
Activities to Perform

II.A.1 Inspect repair and parts storage facilities and prepare a written assessment of the adequacy of space, tools and equipment, physical layout, security, safety and environmental compliance.

II.A.2 Prepare a table showing the current fleet inventory by year, make and model; fuel use type; capacity; date of purchase; purchase price (if available; and current mileage. This should include all vehicles owned by the district including buses, police vehicles, maintenance vehicles, and the like.

II.A.3 By examining vehicle maintenance workorders and interviewing staff, prepare a list of all preventive and major maintenance task categories for vehicles stipulating the type of maintenance performed, the frequency of the maintenance, who performs the maintenance whether in-house or by some external entity and the timeliness of each category of repairs including driver requested bus repairs.

II.A.4 Physically inspect school buses and, if applicable, other vehicles maintained by the department to determine the overall condition and identify trends to improve performance and repair processes.

II.A.5 Examine the fleet maintenance and/or workorder tracking system and prepare a list of the systems capabilities, which modules are in use and which, if any, are not. Determine if the systems capability meets the district’s needs and whether the system is integrated with other appropriate systems to eliminate redundant data entry and possible errors.

Questions to Ask
How many district vehicles other than buses does the district own? How many miles does each vehicle log each year?
How are maintenance costs recorded, monitored and evaluated each year? Are maintenance costs used to determine when to retire buses? When to refurbish buses? Has the district used bus-refurbishing opportunities provided through the Texas Department of Corrections?
What procedure are in place for drivers to check the vehicle (including fluid levels) daily and report status to maintenance personnel? What is reviewed during pre-trip inspections? Post-trip inspections? How are needed repairs communicated to the mechanics?
Are contracted services considered to reduce costs if service quality and effectiveness can be maintained?
How does the district hold down the cost of parts, including tires? Does the district participate in cooperative purchasing arrangement available through the General Services Commission? Does the district following purchasing laws and guidelines in competitively bidding parts? What alternatives exist for purchasing parts and supplies at a reduced cost? Is maintaining a parts inventory the best way to ensure the availability of regularly needed parts? How is the parts inventory maintained? Is there any obsolete inventory that should be disposed of?
How has the district sought to reduce fuel costs? Has the district evaluated the use of alternative fuels such as propane? Does the district purchase fuel cooperatively with other school districts or governmental entities in the area? Does the district maintain its own fuel tanks and purchase fuel in bulk? Or, does the district purchase fuel at local service stations? If credit cards are used to purchase fuel, how are charges controlled? Does the district buy new buses that use less fuel or less expensive fuel? How much fuel does the district purchase monthly, annually, or by another schedule?
With regards to equipment and parts:

how does the district cooperatively order and purchase equipment and parts? Buses?
how are parts stored and inventoried?

What measures does the district use to determine whether it has enough mechanics?
Are mechanics required to drive buses? Why? How often (on average)? How has this practice impacted the district’s ability to adequately maintain the buses? Who supervises the mechanics? Are mechanics adequately trained? ASE certified?
What method is used to record, monitor and evaluate maintenance costs for each vehicle, each year?
What alternative purchasing methods does the district use for purchasing parts and supplies to reduce costs? Does the district annually review the types of vehicles needed and purchase the most efficient and effective type for the district? Smaller sizes? Larger sizes? Specific fuel types? Are supplies efficiently acquired and appropriately distributed?
Is there a planned program of equipment and tool replacement within the transportation maintenance function? Do mechanics own their own tools, or are they the property of the district? What equipment does the district own and maintain? What system of controls prevents the theft of district-owned tools and equipment?
II.B. Fleet and Equipment Replacement Schedules

Activity to Perform

II.B.1 Based on information gathered in II.A.2, and other budgetary documentation, determine the average number of buses purchased each year and the average amount budgeted for bus replacement. Compute the bus replacement schedule in practice, and compare it to any stated policies for bus replacement in the district and/or state recommended guidelines for replacement.

Questions to Ask
How does the district decide on the types of vehicles needed and purchased annually to determine the most efficient and effective type for the district? What purchasing process is used when purchasing buses that ensure that the district is getting the best price? Does the district purchase buses through the General Services Commission contract?
Does the district maintain a bus replacement schedule with:

future needs for transportation identified in relationship to available equipment?
bus replacements meeting existing federal and state codes?

a set schedule and methodology for bus replacement?

III. Review and Evaluation of Contracting Process

Transportation services and component parts of the transportation function such as maintenance could be purchased or contracted for through private companies or interlocal agreements with neighboring districts or other governmental entities. It is important to regularly evaluate whether there are goods or services that can be obtained from the private sector at a lower cost, higher quality or both. It is equally important to continually evaluate existing contracts to determine if the district is getting the best value possible through the contracting arrangement. This evaluation process is discussed in great detail in the Purchasing Module, Section IV. Contract Processes and Section V. Yellow Pages Test.
Additional Resources
Links to Transportation Resources
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov
Texas Department of Transportation http://www.dot.state.tx.us
Texas Education Agency School Transportation Home Page http://www.tea.state.tx.us/school.finance/transportation/index.html

I.A.1	Examine the organization and staffing charts and job descriptions for all transportation related functions including vehicle maintenance and parts ordering and warehousing. Interview staff to determine reporting arrangements, whether the organizational structure depicted on the chart reflects the actual organization of the department, and document if it has been changed recently or repeatedly in the recent past or is anticipated to change in the near future. Explain the reasons for any changes.
I.A.2	Examine the staffing including substitute drivers, and budgets of transportation and transportation related functions and determine appropriate staffing ratios within the function such as mechanics to total buses in the fleet, etc. Evaluate whether the budget and staffing level compares favorably to industry standards.
I.A.3	Prepare a chart showing the salary rates and ranges for each position within the transportation function, and the budgeted or actual overtime worked by each position type stated in hours and/or dollars, as appropriate. Compare salary rates to industry standards and note any areas where consistent, excessive overtime is being used.
I.A.4	Prepare a list, by position, of all staff development or certifications provided and/or required at time of hire, at orientation, annually and at other intervals. Show whether that training is provided in-house or by contract and the approximate contract cost.

I.C.1	Using reports from the Texas Education Agency for the last three to five years, compare the number of riders, regular education transportation cost per mile, the special education transportation cost per mile, the regular education transportation cost per rider, and the special education transportation cost per rider of the district to peer districts and state and regional averages.
I.C.2	Compile annual operations and performance data for regular and special education routes, including the number of daily student riders, the number of miles driven, the operations cost and the daily cost per student rider. Track trends in Transportation costs (operations costs for both regular and special education transportation, annual miles for both regular and special education, and cost per mile for both regular and special education) over five years. Track trends in transportation costs (salaries and benefits, purchased/contracted services, supplies and materials, other expenses). Track the amount of route mileage, extracurricular mileage, other mileage, and gross annual mileage over 5 years.
I.C.3	Compile data concerning arrival and departure times and determine the on-time performance of the district’s bus service.
I.C.4	Examine all school bus or other district vehicle accident reports for the last year and determine whether trends exist. If trends are discovered, interview staff to determine what action the district has taken to reverse those trends.

II.A.1	Inspect repair and parts storage facilities and prepare a written assessment of the adequacy of space, tools and equipment, physical layout, security, safety and environmental compliance.
II.A.2	Prepare a table showing the current fleet inventory by year, make and model; fuel use type; capacity; date of purchase; purchase price (if available; and current mileage. This should include all vehicles owned by the district including buses, police vehicles, maintenance vehicles, and the like.
II.A.3	By examining vehicle maintenance workorders and interviewing staff, prepare a list of all preventive and major maintenance task categories for vehicles stipulating the type of maintenance performed, the frequency of the maintenance, who performs the maintenance whether in-house or by some external entity and the timeliness of each category of repairs including driver requested bus repairs.
II.A.4	Physically inspect school buses and, if applicable, other vehicles maintained by the department to determine the overall condition and identify trends to improve performance and repair processes.
II.A.5	Examine the fleet maintenance and/or workorder tracking system and prepare a list of the systems capabilities, which modules are in use and which, if any, are not. Determine if the systems capability meets the district’s needs and whether the system is integrated with other appropriate systems to eliminate redundant data entry and possible errors.