Reduce buses aggressively
Tiering-aware routing that structures runs to pair — directly shrinking the fleet you need on the road.
Constraint-Based Route Optimization
Fewer buses.
Lower cost per route.
In weeks, not months.
Real Routes rebuilds school district transportation around the constraints you actually operate under — structuring runs so more of them pair, fleets shrink, and every route stays feasible.
No commitment · 4-week turnaround · Route economics, visuals & recommendations
20%Fewer buses needed
50%Tiering reached
140 → 230Shared runs expanded
$3M+Annual savings unlocked
Outcomes from recent district engagements — see the case studies for full context.
What we can do for you
Three outcomes, every engagement
Cut cost per route
Constraint-based optimization models that target executable savings in operating cost, not just theoretical math.
Actionable in weeks
A solution your team can implement this planning cycle — delivered in weeks, not months of consulting.
What is optimization
Optimization has many forms
Districts rarely need every lever at once. We start where the opportunity is largest and the change is feasible.
Route building & pairing
Building full-day routes that minimize disruptions and maximize driver up-time.
Stop optimization
Reducing bus stops to increase efficiency, improve on-time performance, and cut cost.
Stop building
Sequencing stops that best minimize run times while serving student needs.
Shared routes
Enabling schools to share vehicle capacity and reduce total bus counts.
Network optimization exercises
Theoretically “unconstrained” studies that size the opportunity and inform long-term planning.
Constraints lead the process
How are we different?
We build runs designed to tier
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Executable, not just optimal
Most systems target mathematically optimal solutions. We target executable processes that adapt to how your organization actually operates.
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Structured to pair
Most platforms tier what they're given. We structure runs so more of them can pair with another school's run.
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Built to shrink the fleet
By constructing runs to maximize tiering opportunity, we directly reduce fleet requirements and operating cost.
Levels of complexity
Solutions that range from simple to complex
Engagements scale with your appetite for change — each level unlocks more bus reductions than the last.
- 01
Re-tiering existing structure
Re-tier your current routing to target immediate bus reductions — minimal disruption.
- 02
Run building with all existing stops
Rebuild runs from your existing stop set to open more pairing opportunities.
- 03
Shared route opportunities
Identify where one bus can serve two nearby schools within their bell windows.
- 04
Shared routes with mixed pairs
Mixed-load routing across compatible schools — the deepest fleet reductions.
Successful partnerships
Proven in the field
Four engagements, four different levers — each measured against the district's real operating constraints.
Case Study 01
Re-tiering with reliable travel times
50%Tiering reached
−20%Buses needed
+60%Tiered runs built
Before
The district's old routing software produced tiered runs that weren't feasible. Buses couldn't finish the first run and reach the second school on time — forcing drivers to leave early or arrive late.
Intervention
Our model provided high-quality predictive travel times calibrated to actual operating windows and bus speeds, combined with tiering logic that handles the district's real constraints.
After
Tiering rose to 50%, every route was feasible, and the buses needed dropped by 20%.
- Optimization to build tiered runs, increasing tiered runs by 60%
- Relaxed pairing constraints where allowed, while preserving mirrored routes for students needing the same driver or aide
- Flexible first-run arrival times to open more tiering opportunities
- Travel-time allowances reflecting bus speeds in no-traffic conditions
Case Study 02
Expanding shared runs
140→230Shared runs
−45Routes eliminated
90%Single runs tiered*
Before
Shared runs — one bus serving two nearby schools with compatible bell times — were built manually. The district operated about 140 shared runs, then tiered like single runs.
Intervention
We used optimization customized to the district to identify run pairs where a single bus could perform a mixed-load run, serving both schools within their bell windows.
After
Generated 230 shared runs, up from 140. The 90 additional shared runs removed 90 separate runs and, through tiering, eliminated 45 routes.
- Mixed-load routing across compatible schools
- Bell-time shifts under 30 minutes enabled additional tiering
- 90% of single runs converted to tiered among participating schools
*Among participating schools.
Case Study 03
Bell-time adjustment enabling tiering
90%Single runs tiered*
<30 minBell shifts needed
50%→Past the plateau
Before
After earlier tiering gains, the district plateaued near 50% tiered. The ceiling was a cluster of schools with early bell times too close together for their runs to pair — no amount of routing work could tier runs whose bell windows physically overlapped.
Intervention
We identified the minimum bell-time shifts — under 30 minutes, school by school — that would unlock tiering, working only with schools willing to adjust. Each small change created a ripple of new tiering opportunities elsewhere.
After
Among schools that adjusted, 90% of single runs became tiered. The district offered those schools a first-year financial incentive to offset the change.
*Among schools that adjusted bell times.
Case Study 04
Vendor assignment optimization
$3MAnnual savings (~3%)
15+Vendors optimized
100%Compliance maintained
- Replaced manual assignment across 15+ vendors
- Optimized for proximity, cost, and constraints
- $3M annual savings (~3%) achieved
- Maintained 100% compliance and feasibility
- Completes an integrated cost-reduction strategy
Our proposal
Start with a free feasibility assessment
See the size of the opportunity in your own network before committing to anything.
- Free feasibility assessment — at no cost to your district
- No commitment — a look at the numbers, not a contract
- 4-week turnaround — answers within a planning cycle
- Route economics, visuals & recommendations — pairing, sharing, and/or stop reductions
Other services
More ways we reduce cost
Beyond core route optimization, each of these can be applied to limited changes or district-wide.
Bell-time optimization
Find the minimum schedule changes that unlock tiering — leveraged for limited changes or district-wide.
Vendor assignments
Optimized assignment for districts that rely on third-party transport services.
Student-stop assignments
Student-to-stop assignments and stop reductions that tighten every run.
Travel-time adjustments
Predictive travel times sourced from Google Maps to calibrate real operating windows.
Second-order pairing
Reporting that surfaces better options to rebuild routes after the first round of gains.
Not sure where to start?
Tell us your constraints and we'll point to the highest-value lever.
Talk to us →About us
30+ years of optimization & operations
Chris and Martin have spent three decades in network optimization and operations management across both the public and private sectors.
C
Chris
B.S. Computer Science · M.B.A.
- 20+ years as a software developer and manager in the financial industry.
- 10 years consulting for Chicago Public Schools — initially student information systems, with a focus on data management.
- 17 years supporting student transportation, including real-time eligibility logic spanning 60+ parameters.
- Built reporting and interfaces for runs, routes, diagnostics, vendor route sheets, change reports, bus-aide changes, run sharing, pairing and billing.
- Delivered multiple optimization solutions — tiering, bell times, procurement, run generation and summer-school bell times.
M
Martin Ellinger
Graduate work in freight network optimization
- 15 years in transportation and manufacturing focused on efficiency, cost savings and network optimization.
- Led internal and external consulting teams in the food & beverage manufacturing industries.
- Stood up new operations teams across Bunzl, Anheuser-Busch and Chicago Public Schools.
- Managed $450M zero-based budgeting at Anheuser-Busch, improving forecast accuracy 8% YoY.
- Spearheaded warehouse and network optimization, using custom financial simulations and models to drive risk-adjusted return improvements.
- Delivered $7M+ in annualized savings through process-improvement and network-optimization projects at Chicago Public Schools.
Let's talk
Ready to run fewer buses next year?
Start with a free, no-commitment feasibility assessment. We'll show you the route economics for your own district in about four weeks.
Martin Ellinger
Real Routes