Transportation
School bus costs
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Buses are getting more expensive, in special education and in the regular-route contract. The state repays only a slice of special education busing. The athletic line rose because the district moved that cost from player fees to the town budget, mostly taxes.
- Athletic transportation
- Band and music trips
- Regular routes
- Special education transportation
Left bar, pale: budget voted before the year. Right bar, solid: spent at the close. General fund. The last year is budget only.
All buses
Regular routes
Special education
Athletics
Spent, FY2026
$1,724,343
all school buses, spent, FY2026
$976,500
regular routes
$633,291
special education vans, not the Dee Bus contract
$110,650
athletics, on the town budget
What one unit costs
$485–$515
one bus, one school day
contract
—
one van, one school day
not published
$6.50
a mile, field and athletic trips
contract
$130
an hour of the driver waiting
contract
55%
of a bid-form trip is waiting: $520 of $942.50
contract
How much
—
children who ride
not published
11
buses on regular routes
contract
180
school days a bus is paid for
contract
—
special education vans and monitors
not published
176
athletic bus trips, from the posted schedules
our estimate
Growth a year
2.5%
a year: the most the levy may grow, no override
law
+4.9%
a year, regular routes, since FY2019
+10.1%
a year, special education, since FY2019
Already fixed
+7.9%
contract price, into FY2027
contract
+7.4%
contract price, into FY2028
contract
$1,131,390
regular routes in FY2028, already fixed
contract
Budget against spending
+11.2%
school-day buses, FY2027 budget
+2.4%
all buses together, FY2027 budget
$67,555
special education past its FY2026 budget
$127,550
athletic buses cut from FY2027
Who pays
71%
of town budget revenue is property tax, FY2026 projection
5.5%
of all buses repaid by the state
$0
state aid for regular routes and athletics
$94,993
repaid by the state, special education only
$40,000
athletics on the town budget, FY2024
$117,555
athletic buses, all payers, FY2024: district sheet
All buses
Spent, FY2026
$1,724,343
all school buses, spent, FY2026
How much
—
children who ride
not published
Growth a year
2.5%
a year: the most the levy may grow, no override
law
Budget against spending
+11.2%
school-day buses, FY2027 budget
+2.4%
all buses together, FY2027 budget
Who pays
71%
of town budget revenue is property tax, FY2026 projection
5.5%
of all buses repaid by the state
Regular routes
Spent, FY2026
$976,500
regular routes
What one unit costs
$485–$515
one bus, one school day
contract
How much
11
buses on regular routes
contract
180
school days a bus is paid for
contract
Growth a year
+4.9%
a year, regular routes, since FY2019
Already fixed
+7.9%
contract price, into FY2027
contract
+7.4%
contract price, into FY2028
contract
$1,131,390
regular routes in FY2028, already fixed
contract
Who pays
$0
state aid for regular routes and athletics
Special education
Spent, FY2026
$633,291
special education vans, not the Dee Bus contract
What one unit costs
—
one van, one school day
not published
How much
—
special education vans and monitors
not published
Growth a year
+10.1%
a year, special education, since FY2019
Budget against spending
$67,555
special education past its FY2026 budget
Who pays
$94,993
repaid by the state, special education only
Athletics
Spent, FY2026
$110,650
athletics, on the town budget
What one unit costs
$6.50
a mile, field and athletic trips
contract
$130
an hour of the driver waiting
contract
55%
of a bid-form trip is waiting: $520 of $942.50
contract
How much
176
athletic bus trips, from the posted schedules
our estimate
Budget against spending
$127,550
athletic buses cut from FY2027
Who pays
$40,000
athletics on the town budget, FY2024
$117,555
athletic buses, all payers, FY2024: district sheet
What it adds up to
- 1
Buses are growing 2 to 4 times as fast as the levy may.
Mixed pictureAre buses getting more expensive, and where?
- 2
The biggest piece, regular routes, is priced by contract through FY2028.
MatchesDo the regular bus routes match the contract?
- 3
Special education grows fastest, and nothing published counts what it buys.
Does not matchIs special education busing budgeted right?
- 4
The FY2027 total looks flat because athletic buses were cut, not because buses got cheaper.
- 5
The state repays a small share, and nothing for regular routes or athletics.
Mixed pictureDoes state money or the bus fee offset the cost?
- 6
Athletic buses moved from player fees to the town budget, which property taxes mostly pay for.
Mixed pictureHow does the athletic fee fund play into bus costs?
Transportation, topic by topic
Dee Bus contract
Regular routes cost exactly the contract price, which is fixed through FY2028.
Special education transportation
The fastest-growing bus line: 10.1% a year, and $67,555 past its FY2026 budget.
Also under Special education, FY2026 closeout
State reimbursement
The state repays 5.5% of what the town spends on buses, all of it for special education.
Bus fee
The new bus fee did not lower what the school budget paid for buses in FY2026.
FY2027 bus budget
School-day buses rise 11.2% in FY2027; the total shows 2.4% because athletic buses were cut.
Athletic transportation
Athletic bus funding
From FY2025, athletic buses moved from player fees to the town budget, mostly taxes.
Also under Athletics
FY2027 athletic bus cut
FY2027 cut athletic buses from the town budget, then put $60,000 back, most on the fee fund.
Also under Athletics
Bus cost by sport
Track costs most on the district’s sheet: $13,864 in FY2024, ahead of the next sport’s $9,078.
Also under Athletics
Away trips by sport
The posted schedules list 240 away games in FY2026, about 176 bus trips by our estimate.
Also under Athletics
| Year | Regular routes | Special education | Athletics | Band and music | All buses | Athletics, all payersdistrict sheet |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2026 | $976,500 | $633,291 | $110,650 | $3,902 | $1,724,343 | — |
| FY2025 | $907,200 | $434,922 | $87,822 | $5,205 | $1,435,149 | $91,066 |
| FY2024 | $917,525 | $401,402 | $40,000 | $4,205 | $1,363,132 | $117,555 |
| FY2023 | $837,900 | $320,244 | $39,880 | $7,565 | $1,205,589 | — |
| FY2022 | $727,425 | $241,390 | $54,567 | $2,620 | $1,026,002 | — |
| FY2021 | $667,775 | $260,921 | $39,703 | $0 | $968,399 | — |
| FY2020 | $509,040 | $223,350 | $38,795 | $2,900 | $774,085 | — |
| FY2019 | $696,600 | $322,047 | $36,974 | $6,075 | $1,061,696 | — |
| FY2018 | $675,000 | $366,184 | $33,500 | $2,740 | $1,077,424 | — |
| FY2017 | $625,500 | $360,537 | $23,000 | $1,927 | $1,010,964 | — |
| FY2016 | $527,580 | $460,508 | $23,000 | $2,471 | $1,013,559 | — |
| FY2015 | $527,580 | $480,819 | $21,600 | $2,168 | $1,032,167 | — |
| FY2014 | $467,634 | $444,752 | $17,000 | $4,417 | $933,803 | — |
| FY2013 | $507,764 | $440,499 | $17,276 | $3,498 | $969,037 | — |
| FY2012 | $414,450 | $309,766 | $24,992 | $2,214 | $751,422 | — |
| FY2011 | $450,011 | $267,248 | $25,000 | $3,545 | $745,804 | — |
| FY2010 | $470,434 | $226,876 | $29,744 | $3,350 | $730,404 | — |
Town general fund, paid plus still owed at the year-end close. The last column is a sheet the district built, not the ledger; it adds what the families’ fee fund paid.