NORTH PORT, Fla. — Sarasota County Schools has built a bus depot in North Port, which officials say will save the district an estimated $400,000 annually in fuel costs and driver pay, the Herald-Tribune reports.
The depot that was previously used is at Venice’s Taylor Ranch Elementary School, which is about 48 miles from North Port High School, and as North Port grew, officials realized that buses were driving deadhead miles from the terminal in Venice to their first and last pickups of the day. The district now plans to close the Venice terminal.
Ellery Girard, transportation director for the district, told the Herald-Tribune that the new depot in North Port greatly reduces the number of empty miles the buses travel. Girard also said that bus pickup times and routes are not expected to change, so students won’t be affected.
To read the full story, click here.
New bus depot to save district $400K in fuel, driver pay
Sarasota County Schools builds the depot in North Port, Fla., which the transportation director says reduces the number of empty miles the drivers had been traveling from the old depot to their first and last pickups of the day. Pickup times and routes aren’t expected to change.
More Management
All About Cooperative Purchasing: A Guide for School Transportation Pros
Stop bidding everything and try a simpler way. Here's how cooperative purchasing can streamline purchases while maintaining compliance. Sourcewell breaks down the process in this episode of The Route, sponsored by IC Bus.
Read More →
EverDriven Launches New School Bus Routing Services
The alternative transportation company expands its services to traditional yellow buses with the launch of a new division focused on helping school districts optimize their routes.
Read More →
2026 Trailblazer: Joshua Roberts of First Student
Roberts, 35, serves as the lead IT application engineer for vehicle electrification at First Student, where he helps shape scalable, real-world EV infrastructure to support student transportation.
Read More →
2026 Trailblazer: Quavion Swazer of Puyallup School District
Swazer, 29, serves as director of transportation at Puyallup School District, where he champions student wellbeing and inspires the next generation of industry leaders.
Read More →
2026 Trailblazer: Katia Dubas of IMMI
Dubas, 38, serves as sales manager and safety advocate at IMMI, where she advances school bus occupant protection through industry education, OEM collaboration, and proactive safety policy efforts.
Read More →
2026 Trailblazer: Eric Kramlick of TransPar
Kramlick, 30, runs operations for TransPar in Hawaii, where he also showed dedication while helping Maui recover from the recent wildfires.
Read More →
2026 Trailblazer: Jonquez Moore of Little Elm ISD
Moore, 32, grew up around the school bus, leading him to the classroom and eventually inspiring high-performing teams while bringing operations in house (twice).
Read More →
2026 Trailblazer: Joshua Baran of Odyssey Charter School
Baran, 38, serves as transportation supervisor at Odyssey Charter School in Delaware, where he leads daily operations with a focus on safety and professional growth.
Read More →
2026 Trailblazer: Tyler Maybee of Denver Public Schools
Maybee, 36, leads transportation operations for Denver Public Schools, where he is advancing equity, efficiency, and cross-department collaboration to improve student access.
Read More →
2026 Trailblazer: Lexi Higgins of TAT
Higgins, 38, serves as director of industry engagement at TAT (Truckers Against Trafficking), where she equips school transportation professionals with the tools to recognize and report human trafficking.
Read More →