General education students who have not yet appeared on an approved route will not be able to board the bus home until HISD processes their assignment.
As of September 3, students in general education at the Houston Independent School District (HISD) must appear on the list of an approved route in order to be able to use the afternoon school bus.
Students who need transportation but do not yet have a route assigned will not be able to board until the district completes the assignment process. The measure is part of the implementation of the SMARTtag system and the updating of student records for those who use school transportation.
Students without a route must submit a transportation request
Families whose student needs the service and does not yet appear on a route can submit a transportation request or check with their school to confirm that the request has already been submitted and processed.
HISD uses a specific form for new requests and eligibility questions. Once the Routing & Scheduling area receives a request, the district sets a deadline of up to 10 business days to process it.
General education K-12 students who attend their assigned neighborhood school or a magnet school may be eligible for transportation if they live within 2 miles or more of the campus. Approval depends on HISD transportation requirements.
Families who still need to request a route can complete HISD’s official transportation form.
Forgetting the SMARTtag is not the same as having no route assigned
The new restriction refers to the route assignment, not simply to carrying the SMARTtag card.
Students who ride the bus must carry their SMARTtag identification and scan it when boarding and alighting. However, if a student forgets or loses the card, drivers have a manual registration procedure using the passenger list and the bus tablet.
HISD provides an initial replacement card at no cost. After that replacement, each additional card costs $5.
The situation is different when the student does not appear on the authorized route: as of September 3 they will not be able to use the general afternoon bus until they have an approved assignment.
SMARTtag allows recording when the student boards and exits
SMARTtag began to be used with the start of the school year on August 10. Each student who uses school transportation scans their identification when boarding and when leaving the bus.
The system enables staff to verify that the student uses the correct route and stop. Parents or guardians linked to the student’s profile can also receive notifications via the SMARTtag app or portal.
If the address, phone, email, or guardian details are incorrect, HISD asks that they be updated directly with the school, since that information is used for routes and transportation notifications.
For this school year, HISD families also face other changes in student services. In 33 district schools, lunch is no longer automatically free for all students, although breakfast remains free and families can still apply for meal benefits.
HISD states that families with an urgent concern about a student’s location or safety should contact the school immediately and the assigned transportation operations center.
