School districts across the country are struggling to determine how to best utilize the limited number of dollars that are available to them. As these districts face sharp increases in expenses, revenue is decreasing, forcing them to be tight with resources in order to keep budgets balanced.

For some districts, this means cutting necessary services including student transportation. Along with reducing transportation for field trips and extracurricular programs, many districts are reducing the number of buses in their fleets and drivers on their payrolls. So what solutions are available to districts feeling the crunch?

It's no secret that many school districts around the country are looking for creative new ways to make up budget deficits, but some ideas are going down easier than others.

The Dallastown Area School District (DASD) in Pennsylvania has made headlines recently for its latest budget-boosting move: Beginning in January 2017, it will be charging $2 per student, per day, for school bus transportation to or from daycare centers rather than to the students' homes.

Unsurprisingly, this is not going down well with parents or daycare administrators.

There is no denying that technology advances are affecting the way we work and live our lives. This is especially true when it comes to student transportation.

Advances to the transportation industry in general are mind-boggling. Many cars and buses now come equipped with WiFi, satellite radio and a host of integrations. One study even suggests that there will be 10 million self-driving cars on the road by 2020!

There are certainly pros and cons to outsourcing student transportation, and many administrators hold strong opinions on the matter. With more and more districts facing the stark reality of decreased budgets, transportation outsourcing is becoming a common practice.