School Policies

School policies are instrumental in determining levels of ATS, including bike buses. Schools with explicit, supportive ATS policies see higher levels of ATS than those with no policies or prohibitive policies (McDonald et al. 2013, McDonald et al. 2015, Nikitas et al. 2019, Stewert et al. 2012). In particular, having multiple supportive policies has greater impact than a single policy (Ganzar et al, 2023, McDonald et al. 2013, McDonald et al. 2015).

In addition, busing and car policies affect ATS adoption by suppressing trips that would otherwise be made by walking or biking. Buses, parking and pickup/drop off environments can positively impact ATS if it is found to be inconvenient and challenging for parents to navigate/use, but can negatively impact ATS if that same environment is perceived by parents as traffic hazards (Stewert et al. 2012). 

Hazard busing (busing within 1 mile of a school, according to SRTS) removal could potentially save U.S. schools as much as $500m a year, but the value would only be fully captured if trips were replaced with ATS, not private vehicles (McDonald et al. 2016). When busing is unavailable within 1 mile of a school, there are increases in ATS (Thalheimer 2023).

Remuneration for ATS leaders and coordinators, particularly for bike buses, is indicated as key for the longevity of programs. Reliance on volunteers reduces the success of ATS initiatives (Nikitas et al. 2019,) and ATS should be managed by schools, not parents, to reduce the time cost for parents and increase its convenience for them (Lucken et al. 2018). This is supported by bike bus promoters and participants who indicate the resilience of programs is hindered by a lack of financial support (Honey-Rosés 2023, Thalheimer 2023).

Lastly, ATS is particularly affected in the afternoon by the large number of possible post-school locations a student may need to go. On-site activities and facilities for after school activities could produce better ATS adoption for the journey home by ensuring students and parents have fewer possible trips, and reduce the need to trip-chain (Lucken et al. 2018, Stewert et al. 2012).