Transportation for School Choice Programs

HISD’s Transportation Department plays a critical role in ensuring equitable access to high-quality education by removing barriers to learning and by providing students with reliable transportation. Every day, the department safely transports thousands of students to and from school, helping to ensure that distance is never an obstacle to opportunity. This commitment reflects the District’s broader mission to create a student-centered learning environment for all.

For the 26-27 school year, HISD will continue to offer transportation services to all students attending a school of choice who:

Live at least two miles from their school AND
Are assigned one of the following transfer codes by the Office of School Choice: boundary option, capped school, career and technology, homeless, language of instruction, IB, magnet, military academy AND
Live within Houston ISD boundaries (*with the exception of Homeless).

Transportation is not offered to students who have the Space Available, Dual Language or Hardship transfer codes. Regardless of transfer code, HISD does not transport Pre-K 3 and Pre-K 4 students unless they are a student with an IEP/504 plan and receive transportation as a related service.

HISD has ongoing goals to limit transport time for students attending schools of choice. Bus stops for routes that serve schools of choice will likely be placed at HISD schools, and not every home to bus walking path will be safe for every student. For this reason, each family of a student attending a school of choice must be prepared to ensure their student is able to safely and reliably access their bus stop. While some families may be able to utilize a bus stop that is within safe walking distance from their home, most families should expect that their students will need to access their stop via car. Stops may be further than three miles from a home in order to decrease transport time, and parents may be given some choice in selecting a stop that works best for them. See the example scenarios below for more details.

Scenario 1
Scenario 2

Scenario 1

Student A is zoned to Westbury HS but accepts a seat on a magnet transfer to HSPVA via school choice. The closest bus stop for a route serving HSPVA is at Westbury HS, which is 3.3 miles from the student’s home. The family creates a carpool with other HSPVA students in the neighborhood to ensure that Student A has a ride to and from the bus stop each day. The bus picks up the HSPVA students from Westbury before stopping at Bellaire and continuing to HSPVA. The total ride time for Student A is between 35-40 minutes.

Scenario 2

Student B is zoned to Clifton MS but attends Cullen Middle School on a military academy transfer. There are very few students near her home that also attend Cullen. The closest bus stop to her home that serves Cullen is at Garden Oaks K-8, but Student B’s parent looks at all the bus stops serving this school and realizes that the stop at Hogg MS is on his way to work. The family selects Hogg for the student’s bus stop. The bus picks up Student B from Hogg daily before stopping at Marshall, Wharton, and Yates before continuing to Cullen. Total ride time for Student B is between 45-55 minutes.

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