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Digest of Education Statistics
2009 Tables and Figures All Years of Tables and Figures Most Recent Full Issue of the Digest


Table 176. Students transported at public expense and current expenditures for transportation: Selected years, 1929-30 through 2006-07
School year Average daily attendance, all students Students transported at public expense Expenditures for transportation (in unadjusted dollars) Expenditures for transportation (in constant 2007-08 dollars)1
Number Percent of total Total2  (in thousands) Average per student transported Total2  (in thousands) Average per student transported
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
1929-30 21,265,000 1,902,826   8.9 $54,823   $29   $678,047   $356  
1931-32 22,245,000 2,419,173   10.9 58,078   24   852,829   353  
1933-34 22,458,000 2,794,724   12.4 53,908   19   861,836   308  
1935-36 22,299,000 3,250,658   14.6 62,653   19   965,199   297  
1937-38 22,298,000 3,769,242   16.9 75,637   20   1,117,801   297  
                       
1939-40 22,042,000 4,144,161   18.8 83,283   20   1,261,623   304  
1941-42 21,031,000 4,503,081   21.4 92,922   21   1,261,658   280  
1943-44 19,603,000 4,512,412   23.0 107,754   24   1,309,138   290  
1945-46 19,849,000 5,056,966   25.5 129,756   26   1,505,844   298  
1947-48 20,910,000 5,854,041   28.0 176,265   30   1,601,530   274  
                       
1949-50 22,284,000 6,947,384   31.2 214,504   31   1,917,448   276  
1951-52 23,257,000 7,697,130   33.1 268,827   35   2,165,324   281  
1953-54 25,643,871 8,411,719   32.8 307,437   37   2,420,238   288  
1955-56 27,740,149 9,695,819   35.0 353,972   37   2,787,508   287  
1957-58 29,722,275 10,861,689   36.5 416,491   38   3,087,470   284  
                       
1959-60 32,477,440 12,225,142   37.6 486,338   40   3,504,024   287  
1961-62 34,682,340 13,222,667   38.1 576,361   44   4,059,378   307  
1963-64 37,405,058 14,475,778   38.7 673,845   47   4,625,327   320  
1965-66 39,154,497 15,536,567   39.7 787,358   51   5,223,933   336  
1967-68 40,827,965 17,130,873   42.0 981,006   57   6,106,826   356  
                       
1969-70 41,934,376 18,198,577   43.4 1,218,557   67   6,829,145   375  
1971-72 42,254,272 19,474,355   46.1 1,507,830   77   7,757,245   398  
1973-74 41,438,054 21,347,039   51.5 1,858,141   87   8,436,937   395  
1975-76 41,269,720 21,772,483   52.8 2,377,313   109   9,075,010   417  
1977-78 40,079,590 21,800,000 3  54.4 2,731,041   125 3  9,231,026   423 3 
                       
1979-80 38,288,911 21,713,515   56.7 3,833,145   177   10,452,829   481  
1980-81 37,703,744 22,272,000 3  59.1 4,408,000 3  198 3  10,772,669 3  484 3 
1981-82 37,094,652 22,246,000 3  60.0 4,793,000 3  215 3  10,782,162 3  485 3 
1982-83 36,635,868 22,199,000 3  60.6 5,000,000 3  225 3  10,784,615 3  486 3 
1983-84 36,362,978 22,031,000 3  60.6 5,284,000 3  240 3  10,990,375 3  499 3 
                       
1984-85 36,404,261 22,320,000 3  61.3 5,722,000 3  256 3  11,453,089 3  513 3 
1985-86 36,523,103 22,041,000 3  60.3 6,123,000 3  278 3  11,912,214 3  540 3 
1986-87 36,863,867 22,397,000 3  60.8 6,551,000 3  292 3  12,468,061 3  557 3 
1987-88 37,050,707 22,158,000 3  59.8 6,888,000 3  311 3  12,587,864 3  568 3 
1988-89 37,268,072 22,635,000 3  60.7 7,550,000 3  334 3  13,188,578 3  583 3 
                       
1989-90 37,799,296 22,459,000 3  59.4 8,030,990   358 3  13,389,854   596 3 
1990-91 38,426,543 22,000,000 3  57.3 8,678,954   394 3  13,720,080   624 3 
1991-92 38,960,783 23,165,000 3  59.5 8,769,754   379 3  13,433,191   580 3 
1992-93 39,570,462 23,439,000 3  59.2 9,252,300   395 3  13,743,066   586 3 
1993-94 40,146,393 23,858,000 3  59.4 9,627,155   404 3  13,938,790   584 3 
                       
1994-95 40,720,763 23,693,000 3  58.2 9,889,034   417 3  13,918,995   587 3 
1995-96 41,501,596 24,155,000 3  58.2 10,396,426   430 3  14,245,593   590 3 
1996-97 42,262,004 24,090,000 3  57.0 10,989,809   456 3  14,640,953   608 3 
1997-98 42,765,774 24,342,000 3  56.9 11,465,658   471 3  15,007,251   617 3 
1998-99 43,186,715 24,898,000 3  57.7 12,224,454   491 3  15,728,151   632 3 
                       
1999-2000 43,806,726 24,951,000 3  57.0 13,007,625   521 3  16,266,217   652 3 
2000-01 44,075,930 24,471,000 3  55.5 14,052,654   574 3  16,990,925   694 3 
2001-02 44,604,592 24,529,000 4  55.0 14,799,365   603 4  17,582,469   717 4 
2002-03 45,017,360 24,621,000 4  54.7 15,648,821   636 4  18,191,879   739 4 
2003-04 45,325,731 25,159,000 4  55.5 16,348,784   650 4  18,598,705   739 4 
                       
2004-05 45,625,458 25,318,000 4  55.5 17,459,659   690 4  19,282,206   762 4 
2005-06 45,931,617 25,402,000 4  55.3 18,850,234   742 4  20,054,234   789 4 
2006-07 46,127,761 25,631,000 4  55.6 19,979,044   779 4  20,719,335   808 4 
1 Constant dollars based on the Consumer Price Index, prepared by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, adjusted to a school-year basis.
2 Excludes capital outlay for years through 1979-80, and 1989-90 to the latest year. From 1980-81 to 1988-89 total transportation figures include capital outlay.
3 Estimate based on data appearing in January issues of School Bus Fleet.
4 Estimate based on data reported by School Transportation News.
NOTE: Some data have been revised from previously published figures.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Statistics of State School Systems, 1929-30 through 1975-76; Revenues and Expenditures for Public Elementary and Secondary Education, 1977-78 and 1979-80; Common Core of Data (CCD), "National Public Education Financial Survey," 1987-88 through 2006-07; Bobit Publishing Co., School Bus Fleet, "School Transportation: 2000-2001 School Year"; School Transportation News, "K-12 Enrollment/Transportation Data," 2001-02 through 2007-08; and unpublished data. (This table was prepared October 2009.)

2009 Tables and Figures All Years of Tables and Figures Most Recent Full Issue of the Digest