## The Rise of Ride-Sharing for School Children: Filling the Gap Left by Shrinking Bus Services
The decline in school bus services across the United States has created a transportation crisis for many families, particularly in urban areas. As districts struggle to find and retain bus drivers, and as more students attend schools far from their homes, the responsibility for getting children to school increasingly falls on parents. This shift has spurred innovation, with ride-sharing services emerging to fill the void.
One such service is PiggyBack Network, founded by Ismael El-Amin after a chance encounter on a Chicago highway. Witnessing two fellow parents navigating the same congested route to their children’s selective-enrollment school, El-Amin recognized an opportunity: parents could be a resource to one another. PiggyBack connects parents seeking rides for their children with other parents traveling the same route, charging approximately 80 cents per mile and compensating drivers with credits for their own children’s rides. The service has facilitated hundreds of rides in its first year in Chicago, and El-Amin is exploring expansion to other states.
This problem is not unique to Chicago. Chicago Public Schools (CPS), the nation’s fourth-largest district, has drastically reduced bus service in recent years, providing transportation only to disabled and homeless students, leaving the vast majority of families to find their own solutions. A recent CPS pilot program offering bus service from “hub stops” aims to assist around 1,000 students, but this falls far short of addressing the overall need, according to Erin Rose Schubert of the CPS Parents for Buses advocacy group. She highlights the disparity, noting that families with resources found alternative solutions, while others were forced to withdraw their children from school due to lack of transportation.
The shrinking availability of school buses is a national trend. A Federal Highway Administration survey revealed that only about 28% of U.S. students use school buses, a significant decrease from 36% in 2017. This scarcity has created a market for companies like HopSkipDrive, which contracts directly with school districts to provide transportation for students lacking reliable options. Operating in 13 states, HopSkipDrive underscores the growing demand for alternative transportation solutions. However, regulatory hurdles in some states, like Kentucky, where students even created a viral hip-hop song highlighting the issue, demonstrate the ongoing challenges in addressing this widespread problem.
To mitigate safety concerns, companies like PiggyBack and HopSkipDrive employ robust screening processes for drivers, including fingerprint checks and requirements for childcare or parenting experience. Many also implement real-time tracking and password verification systems to ensure children’s safety and peace of mind for parents.
In Chicago, PiggyBack has provided a lifeline for families struggling with transportation. Sabrina Beck, a retired police officer, uses the service to transport her son and another student, illustrating how these services address both practical and safety concerns. She emphasizes the crucial role of these options in ensuring that students have access to education, regardless of their families’ transportation resources. The success of PiggyBack and similar initiatives highlights the need for innovative approaches to address the growing transportation challenges facing students and their families.