Like seemingly every other cost, sending your child to school on a yellow school bus is now going to cost a whole lot more.

For the 2026-27 school year, Calgary Board of Education general transportation fees will be increasing from $360 per rider to $500 per rider. In the admin report from the May 27 Board of Trustees agenda, the board said dwindling transportation reserves and rising fuel and labour costs are driving the increase.

CBE Trustee Nancy Close said the increase makes sense on paper but has a different meaning in practice.

“Although the fee increase is substantial, it could be argued that $500 a year is, in comparison to other school boards and schools, a reasonable amount,” she said during the meeting.

“But context is everything, and we need to recognize the affordability crisis we’re experiencing. Transportation is not the only cost that some families have to pay.”

Flexible payment options exist, ensuring that no student is denied service, according to the document.

To compare, the Foothills School Division charges $100 per rider, up to a maximum of $250 per household. Rockyview School Division charges $415 per student in Grades 1-12, and $207.50 is charged for Kindergarteners. In Edmonton, public school students pay $50 per month for yellow school buses and $60 per month for Edmonton Transit.

Close said that having schools in the areas that need them most, so that students wouldn’t need to ride the bus, would have a major impact on transportation.

“It’s obviously much more complicated and complex, and I believe we do need a full review,” she said.

“I remain uncomfortable with transportation driving educational decisions.”

Close was reluctant to approve the school board’s 2026-27 budget because of the increase in fees.

In a statement provided to LWC, the CBE said that they would support any provincial changes to transportation funding. Under the current system, the government fully funds specialized transportation and partially covers general transportation.

“Student transportation fees make up the difference between the actual cost of the service and funding received,” the statement reads.

“General transportation is available to students who attend their designated school, live beyond the school walk zone, and are assigned to general transportation.”

A CBE document from last spring indicated that the current funding model does not work for rapidly growing metro school boards.

“The provincial funding manual allocates transportation funds differently for charter, rural, urban, and metro boards. The metro calculation is based on an estimated number of bus riders,” the document reads.

“The formula assumes that a school with high enrolment will have a greater number of students who can walk to school. Therefore, a percentage of the funding is subtracted based on average enrolment. The higher the enrolment, the greater the deduction.”

With a utilization rate of 95 per cent, CBE is overflowing students from more than 30 schools to 46 receiver schools, according to the document.

“When students are overflowed, they need transportation to another school, but the funding formula does not account for this.”

Different paths taken: CCSD to charge for specialized transportation, CBE will not

After provincial changes allowed school boards to charge families for specialized transportation, the CBE opted against the swap for 2026-27, citing increasing barriers.

Their neighbours, the Calgary Catholic School District (CCSD), went the other way.

For 2026-27, the CCSD is standardizing transportation fees to $450 per student, with a maximum of $900 per household. Transportation fees will include students requiring specialized transportation.

CCSD Superintendent of Support Services, Brad McDonald, called this the fairest route, during the April 22 CCSD Board of Trustees meeting.

“After discussion with our legal services, we believe it’s reasonable and fair that all students are charged for transportation, including our specialized learners,” he said, adding that typically only CCSD students in K-6 are offered yellow bus service, but students with specialized needs in K-12 will have transportation.

“Typically, we would migrate our Grades 7-12 students to a transit with a rebate system, but that’s not appropriate for our specialized learners. We’re stating that the fairest thing to do would be to continue our fees at all grade levels for specialized learners.”

The decision comes instead of increasing general fees. A district-issued statement said the standardization will help offset rising costs.

“Generally speaking, yellow bus routes average approximately 40 students per bus, while specialized transportation routes often serve fewer students due to individualized learning and medical needs,” the statement reads.

“Because of these variables, per-student transportation costs can fluctuate considerably year-to-year and route-to-route. CCSD continues to experience inflationary pressures related to transportation, which remains one of the ongoing budget challenges identified in the 2026-27 operating budget.”

Provincial transportation funding has not kept pace with the realities faced by growing school districts, according to CCSD. Continuing to rely on operational savings to address transportation shortfalls is not sustainable, and those resources are better prioritized for classrooms and student learning, they said.

“CCSD’s Board of Trustees will continue to advocate for targeted, sustainable transportation funding that reflects the needs of students and families across our district.”

The provincial standard is that K-6 students whose driving distance is further than 1.6 km from their school’s front door are eligible for transportation.

Future of transportation fees remains unclear

During the May 27 Board of Trustees meeting, CBE Trustee Susan Vukadinovic said that though fees are pricey, they are a necessary evil.

“Yes, the fee, $500 for a 10-month year, or $50 per month, is substantial. For our youth who are designated to Calgary Transit, those families are paying $860 over a 10-month year, so $86 per month, so there are differences there,” she said.

“It is a reasonable amount, but the fees are what it takes to keep a balanced budget and to work with what we get.”

Trustee Charlene May said that the approved transportation increase is an affordability and access issue facing families across the CBE system. Some families are questioning the fairness of not charging specialized learners transportation fees, May said.

“As our schools become fuller, our class sizes increase, our operating costs rise, and we use up the last of our carryover transportation grant,” she said during the meeting.

“Our costs are rising and will continue to do so.” 

Aside from the 2026-27 fees, no decisions regarding the future of transportation fees have been made.

A motion approved by the CBE Board of Trustees has instructed the Chief Superintendent, Joanne Pitman, to investigate fees and service level options in relation to regular, alternative and specialized transportation and report findings to the Board of Trustees by December 31, 2026.