The Bismarck School Board voted to adopt a two-tier bus system, effective for the 2025-2026 school year, at last night's meeting. This change will have an impact on school start and end times. Please see the press release below for additional information:

Bismarck Public Schools Transitioning to Two-Tier Bus System

Bismarck, ND – The Bismarck School Board voted to adopt a two-tier bus system at their January 13 meeting. Last month, the School Board received a recommendation from the Bismarck Public Schools Operational Excellence Committee and school leaders to adopt a two-tier bus system. A two-tiered system, which staggers school start times for different groups of students, works to maximize efficiency by enabling buses to run multiple routes. The two-tier system will go into effect for the 2025-2026 school year. 

The move to a two-tier system is a response to ongoing transportation challenges faced by the district in recent years, including bus driver shortages, budget constraints, lengthy bus routes, and delayed student pickup. To explore potential solutions, the district first hired Transpar, a consulting firm specializing in school transportation, to evaluate its bussing operations. Transpar's detailed report identified a two-tier system as a possible solution for these issues.

Under the two-tier model, elementary students will be picked up and dropped off first, followed by secondary students. This adjustment necessitates some changes to school start and end times but will improve efficiency and reliability by reducing the number of buses and drivers needed. Some expected benefits are that students may be on the bus for a shorter amount of time, and the district anticipates significant savings on transportation that will allow funds to be allocated to other areas of need. A two-tier system may also improve safety by allowing the separation of elementary and secondary students, who will now ride buses at different times. Based on current estimates, the expected start times will be 7:50 AM for elementary, and between 8:30 – 8:40 AM for secondary. The district is routing families and will finalize start and end times in the near future to ensure all stakeholders remain informed throughout the process.

In recognition of the potential impact on families and the community, BPS initiated an extensive feedback collection process starting last fall. The district hosted three community forums at Simle, Wachter, and Horizon Middle Schools, drawing over 160 participants. Additional input sessions were held during PTO meetings at several schools. In order to ensure all stakeholders were informed and able to provide feedback, videos were shared with all district staff and parents, accompanied by an online feedback form. 

Community feedback indicated a strong interest in ensuring childcare providers and after-school programs are able to accommodate the schedule change. In order to address this concern, BPS is working with community partners, such as BLAST and CREA, to make certain the needs of families are met by making any needed changes and expanding services as necessary. 

Once the routing process is completed, the district will share additional information with the community. BPS will continue to share regular updates while working to transition to the new bus system for the 2025-2026 school year. 

February 28 Update

After planning out routes for students, the district has determined these finalized start/end times for our schools beginning in the 2025-2026 school year:

• Elementary: 7:50 AM - 2:20 PM
• Middle: 8:40 AM - 3:50 PM
• BHS and CHS: 8:30 AM - 3:38 PM
• LHS: 8:30 AM - 3:50 PM

The district continues to collaborate with childcare providers and community partners, such as BLAST and CREA, to make sure the needs of families are considered as we work towards this change. More information will be shared in the near future as we continue to prioritize a smooth transition for next school year.