GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (GRPS) — Grand Rapids Public Schools is now publicizing data about the on-time performance provided by the district’s transportation provider.
The data provided comes from electronic GPS equipment that detects the time each bus arrives at schools and opens its doors for regular drop-offs and pick-ups.
The information is provided to GRPS on a monthly basis by Dean Transportation, the contractor the district works with to provide transportation for scholars.
The first set of metrics measures the timeliness of regular bus runs to and from schools from October 10-31 and has been published on the Reimagine GRPS Dashboard.
Dean reports that 89.9% of the 6,274 trips analyzed showed up on time when picking up and dropping off scholars at school. Nearly 6%, or 359 trips were between one and ten minutes late, 237 trips (3.8%) were 11-20 minutes late, and 41 trips (less than 1%) were more than 20 minutes late.
“We’ve heard numerous stories from our families about how the performance of our transportation provider affects their lives. Now we’re able to look at data to get a clearer picture as to how our busses are performing,” GRPS Superintendent Dr. Leadriane Roby said. “This will serve as a baseline for us as we look at transportation moving forward. The level of service must improve from here in a way that our families and scholars notice. It’s a non-negotiable for me and the Board of Education. This must improve.”
The metrics provided also highlight staffing levels at Dean. The transportation provider reports running 97 regular routes for the district each day. Full-time drivers have been assigned to 86 of the routes. Dean also has 10 full-time substitutes and 26 on-call substitutes on its staff to ensure routes are covered.
In addition to providing metrics, GRPS and Dean Transportation also relaunched the Z-Pass program districtwide. Last week all families utilizing transportation were issued new Z-Pass cards to be scanned as students get on and off the bus. If parents sign up for notifications, the swipe triggers a notification update to parents.
The district will post the performance metrics regularly in the “Reimagine Transportation” section on the Reimagine GRPS Dashboard.
