---
title: 5 takeaways from The State of School Transportation 2021 Report
description: >-
  Our State of School Transportation 2021 Report is incredibly comprehensive -
  here are five major takeaways!
date: '2021-03-25'
author: Aylin Cook
category: Blog
tags:
  - alternative student transportation
  - alternative school transportation
  - after school transportation
canonical_url: https://www.hopskipdrive.com/blog/takeaways-school-transportation-report/
source: hopskipdrive
license: © 2026 HopSkipDrive. All rights reserved.
slug: takeaways-school-transportation-report
id: zyyxfYuG7BpoClkYTL4NH
contentType: article
---

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We surveyed a wide range of school transportation staff, as well as Superintendents and those involved in purchasing. The results were eye-opening — enough to fill a comprehensive report! 

If you don’t have time to read right now, here are five major takeaways from our [State of School Transportation 2021 Report](/school-transportation-2021/). 

## **1. Bus driver shortages are still a major issue**

Overwhelmingly, our respondents’ biggest pain point was clear: [the ongoing bus driver shortage](/blog/bus-driver-shortage-covid/). The vast majority of those who participated in the survey said that COVID-19 will exacerbate the shortage, both now and down the road. 

Nearly four-fifths (78.46%) of respondents flagged the bus driver shortage as a problem. Only 16.92% of respondents called it a non-issue. 

## **2. Bus driver shortages are the main reason why many school districts believe it will take time before they could resume normal operations.** 

More than half (55%) of school districts with populations between 25,000  – 100,000 students believed it could take three months or more to resume normal transportation operations. 

- Bus driver shortages
- Hybrid schedules
- Not enough substitute bus drivers
- Bell times, etc.

## **3. The majority of respondents think general education services will stay the same as pre-COVID**

While bus driver shortages and budgets are an issue, the vast majority — 61.54% of respondents — will not increase or decrease general education services in the 2021 – 2022 school year.

## **4. The four biggest pain points for school transportation staff were: **

- COVID-19 related issues
- Staffing
- Funding constraints
- School bus utilization

## **5. Purchasing for the 2021-2022 school year may be delayed due to budget constraints, but hiring won’t. **

School budgets will delay 40% of respondents from purchasing new vehicles next year. One thing that won’t be put on hold: hiring, likely due to the severity of the bus driver shortage.

[Read the full report here](/school-transportation-2021/)!

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