Student Ridership Tracking
Use card swipe scan-on/scan-off records to document which students rode each bus and when. Create a timestamped safety and compliance trail for daily transportation operations.
Learn More →Know Where Every Bus Is with RFID School Bus Tracking System
Give transportation teams and families dependable visibility with UniteGPS. Our RFID-enabled school bus tracking system combines live GPS locations, student scan-on/scan-off records, route tools, and parent notifications in one FERPA-compliant platform. Built for K-12 districts nationwide, it replaces uncertainty and manual paperwork with timestamped data that supports safer rides, clearer communication, and more confident daily operations.
Our RFID School Bus Tracking Services
Integrated tools give districts real-time fleet visibility, verified student ridership, and streamlined transportation operations.
Live GPS Tracking
Monitor every bus in real time with location updates every five seconds, including when ignition is off. Review mileage, geofence events, speeding, and idle alerts.
Learn More →Parent Bus App
Give families secure, real-time bus location visibility, ETAs, and timestamped ride history. Advanced notifications can confirm when a student scans on or off the bus.
Learn More →Driver Tablet Suite
Equip drivers with turn-by-turn navigation, student scanning, vehicle inspections, and categorized mileage tools. One onboard workflow helps drivers handle unfamiliar routes with greater confidence.
Learn More →SIS Integration
Sync enrollment data with routes, stop assignments, and ridership records automatically. Keep transportation information aligned with the district’s authoritative student information system without manual roster uploads.
IEP Medicaid Invoicing
Turn scan-verified special-education rides and categorized mileage into billing-ready records. Support documentation for eligible Medicaid transportation reimbursement through the Tier 3 tablet suite.
Learn More →Visibility and Verification for Every Ride
UniteGPS brings GPS fleet visibility and RFID-based student ridership records together in one practical K-12 transportation platform. Transportation teams can see where buses are, verify who boarded, give drivers reliable tools, and provide families timely updates without juggling disconnected systems. From daily route changes to special-education documentation, Crosswalk turns critical transportation activity into clear, usable, FERPA-compliant data for districts nationwide.
Trusted District Stories
See how transportation teams use UniteGPS to improve visibility, communication, and daily operational confidence.
Why Choose UniteGPS?
A founder-led platform built around the practical needs of K-12 transportation teams.
Routing, GPS, RFID ridership, parent communication, and driver tools work together in one system.
Integrated Platform
Routing, GPS, RFID ridership, parent communication, and driver tools work together in one system.
District Experience
More than 100 school districts nationwide use a platform refined through real transportation feedback.
Live Human Support
Receive unlimited live support without ticket queues when transportation questions need prompt, practical answers.
Student Data Care
FERPA-compliant tools help districts protect student information while documenting ridership and transportation activity.
Meet the UniteGPS Team
The founders behind practical transportation technology for districts.
Christopher Bunnell
Co-Founder
Christopher Bunnell is a Co-Founder of UniteGPS, the company he helped launch in 2014 after watching his own children wait in the freezing Maine winter for a school bus with no arrival information. Driven by that firsthand frustration, Chris partnered with Steve C. Lanning and Steven J. Lanning to build a real-time GPS tracking solution that gave families the visibility they deserved. Before UniteGPS, Chris served as the on-site client representative in Baltimore for a Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services project, while the technical team operated remotely from California. At UniteGPS, Chris has led client relationships and stakeholder engagement since day one, ensuring the platform continues to solve real problems for school districts and transit agencies nationwide.
Steve C. Lanning
Co-Founder
Steve C. Lanning is a Co-Founder of UniteGPS, bringing deep database architecture and enterprise-level technical expertise to the platform since its founding in 2014. Steve previously served as an Oracle database administrator on a Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services project at the San Diego Supercomputer Center at UC San Diego, where he first collaborated with Chris Bunnell. In the early years of UniteGPS, Steve balanced the project alongside other professional commitments until growing client traction made it a full-time pursuit. His database expertise has been instrumental in building a reliable, scalable platform that now serves over 100 school districts nationwide, supporting everything from route optimization to student ridership tracking and SIS data integration.
Steven J. Lanning
Co-Founder
Steven J. Lanning is a Co-Founder of UniteGPS and the primary architect behind the Crosswalk platform, which he has built and continuously refined since the company's founding in 2014. Steven began his career on the same Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services project as his co-founders, focusing on solution quality assurance and software testing for production readiness while simultaneously pursuing formal software development training. When UniteGPS launched, Steven committed full-time to product development, translating real feedback from transportation directors and drivers into practical platform features. His customer-driven approach to engineering has helped UniteGPS grow into a fully integrated transportation management solution trusted by K-12 districts and transit agencies across the United States.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is an RFID school bus tracking system?
An RFID school bus tracking system records student boardings and exits through a card swipe or scan at the bus. UniteGPS pairs those timestamped ridership records with live GPS location data, creating a clear record of which student rode which vehicle and when. Districts can use the information for safety documentation, parent notifications, attendance-related review, and special-education transportation records.
How does RFID student ridership tracking work on a school bus?
With UniteGPS Tier 3, students scan their cards as they board and exit using the onboard driver tablet. The system records the scan time, vehicle, and related route information. Transportation staff can review ridership records alongside GPS activity, while families can receive advanced scan-on and scan-off notifications when the district enables those features.
Can parents see where their child’s school bus is?
Yes. UniteGPS includes a real-time parent app in Tier 2 that shows a bus’s current location, estimated arrival time, and timestamped ride history. Tier 3 adds advanced ridership notifications tied to student scan-on and scan-off activity. The app is activated by the district, and there is no separate charge to parents for access.
How frequently does UniteGPS update bus locations?
UniteGPS GPS tracking updates every five seconds, giving transportation teams and authorized parents a current view of bus movement. The GPS capability works even when the ignition is off, supporting continuous vehicle visibility. District users can also review mileage, geofence events, speeding alerts, idle alerts, and timestamped location data when questions arise.
Is student information protected in the UniteGPS platform?
UniteGPS is FERPA compliant and designed for K-12 transportation use. Student enrollment information can sync from the district’s student information system, reducing manual data handling and keeping routing, stop assignments, and ridership records aligned. Districts control platform activation and access for parent-facing tracking features, helping maintain appropriate information boundaries.
Can the system support IEP transportation and Medicaid documentation?
Yes. Tier 3 combines scan-verified student rides with categorized mileage to create billing-ready transportation records. This helps districts document IEP and special-education transportation activity for eligible Medicaid reimbursement workflows. Because the records are tied to student scans, vehicle activity, and timestamps, staff have a more reliable audit trail than paper logs or manually maintained spreadsheets.
What hardware is required for RFID bus tracking?
Tier 3 uses an onboard driver tablet for student card scanning, navigation, vehicle inspections, and related transportation tasks. The tier includes all routing and GPS tracking capabilities from Tiers 1 and 2. Hardware is a one-time cost of approximately $1,699 per bus, while the tablet data plan and software are recurring costs. GPS devices are included at Tier 2 without an added hardware charge.
How long does it take to get started with UniteGPS?
UniteGPS offers a free 90-day setup period with routes built by its team, plus integration configuration for district student information systems. Districts can begin with routing essentials, then add GPS tracking or the tablet suite as their needs grow. A free 90-day trial is available for Tier 2, with no credit card required.
Still Have Transportation Questions?
Talk with a UniteGPS specialist about your district’s tracking needs.
Awards and Recognition
Student-data practices designed for K-12 districts.
Proven with school districts nationwide.
FERPA Compliant
Student-data practices designed for K-12 districts.
100+ Districts Served
Proven with school districts nationwide.
Founded in 2014
More than a decade of development.
