Thousands of Ohio students left without a school bus ride as private school transport expands

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This photo taken from video shows, from left, Kenneth Moore Jr, Suelonnee Tingle, Shonnee Hullum, Sage Harrington and Ronnee Tingle, right front, walking to Ronnee Tingle's car after Moore and Suelonnee Tingle were dropped off by an RTA bus after school Wednesday, September 3, 2025 in Dayton, Ohio. (AP Photo/Patrick Aftoora-Orsagos)

COLUMBUS, Ohio – A scramble is underway for some Ohio families over a staple of the back-to-school season: rides on the big, yellow school bus.

Public school districts canceled bus transportation for thousands of high schoolers again this year while in some cases still busing students to private and charter schools to avoid steep fines under state requirements. In Dayton, a stopgap effort that