Home-to-school transport provision by local authorities in the UK involves the organisation of some 8.5 million journeys a day (for scholars entitled to "free" transport). The logistics of this operation are further complicated by the relative volatility of some segments of the market - in particular the rapidly changing requirements of pupils with a statement of special educational needs. GIS are widely available in local authorities but little used to analyse or resolve the problems associated with the effective use of transport resources for home-to-school travel. The paper assesses the potential for greater use of GIS in the procurement of home-to-school travel in the UK by means of a series of case studies. These cover: (1) the practical, full-scale application of GIS-based scheduling and routeing techniques in the USA, based on current practice in one school district; (2) examples of these of GIS by UK local education authorities, drawing on an annual survey of these organisations; and (3) a more detailed analysis of the current position in one shire county, with reference to the practical steps necessary to migrate to GIS-driven school transport planning processes.
Abstract