Post-Decision
What needs to be solved now
The approved plan now depends on enough drivers, workable bell schedules, clear school assignment plans, and a child-care plan families can actually use.
Read post-decision brief →Transportation Analysis
Option A is approved. The work now is making transportation, schedules, and child care function for families by September.
Methodology
See which estimates are firm, which are soft, and what district data would replace them.
Read methodology →Transport Briefings
Read the transportation questions through seven community lenses for families, staff, taxpayers, students, and leaders.
Browse transport briefings →What happens next
Use the broader budget briefings to follow the April funding, boundary, and implementation decisions still ahead.
Open budget briefings →School Board Letter
Read the board-facing memo that focuses on implementation timing, disclosure, and public communication.
Read school board letter →What this analysis can help with
Implementation needs
This section brings the main transportation questions into one place: driver capacity, bell tiers, routeable boundaries, and child-care coverage for families affected by schedule changes.
Budget pressure
Transportation and care costs are part of the work still ahead, especially because the FY27 budget failed on March 30, 2026 and still needs to be rebuilt.
Open questions
Some of the most important inputs are still unresolved, including route models, boundary maps, and a staffing plan that shows how September implementation can work with the drivers available.
Background
How the options differed
If you want to compare the three configurations side by side, start here. This table shows how the options differed on drivers, split families, child care, and cost.
Configuration Comparison
How Option A and Option B compare on transportation impact
Claimed savings range: $1,500,000-$2,200,000. The table below shows the transportation burden residents still need to understand as implementation moves forward.
Key finding: Option B (4 buildings K-4) has the lowest transportation impact across every metric. Option A (administration recommendation) has the highest impact on split families, McKinney-Vento obligations, route expansion, and before/after care gaps. The total unaccounted fiscal exposure under Option A ranges from $1,053,373 to $1,786,769 annually — representing 47.9-119.1% of the claimed savings.
| Metric | Option A | Option B | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Split families | 139-169 | 0-0 | Open analysis |
| McKinney-Vento exposure | $54,337-$127,853 | $30,365-$79,908 | Open analysis |
| SEA staffing gap | +8 to +16 FTE | +12 to +20 FTE | Open analysis |
| Bus tiers needed | 3-4 | 3 | Open analysis |
| Family care cost | $143,640-$803,520 (42-144 families) | $0-$0 (0 families) | Open analysis |
| Total fiscal exposure | $1,053,373-$1,786,769 | $30,365-$79,908 | Open analysis |
| As % of claimed savings | 47.9%-119.1% | 1.4%-5.3% | Open analysis |
Detailed Analyses
Before/After Care Gap Analysis
Read the full analysis for this transportation question.
Bell Schedule Tier Analysis
Read the full analysis for this transportation question.
McKinney-Vento Exposure Analysis
Read the full analysis for this transportation question.
Post-Decision Transportation Brief
Read the full analysis for this transportation question.
SEA Staffing Adequacy Assessment
Read the full analysis for this transportation question.
Split-Family Count Model
Read the full analysis for this transportation question.
Transport Configuration Comparison
Read the full analysis for this transportation question.