As the driver shortage continues to ease across the U.S., additional pressures on school transportation teams are exacerbating the staffing gap. Inflation, tariff hikes, and rising costs across the board are hard pills to swallow when transportation budgets don’t increase at the same pace. Enter the frazzled transportation director feeling a financial pinch. In Texas, Jonathan Pastusek, Northwest ISD’s CFO, told CBS News that last year, the state allotted the district $3.5 million for transportation. It spent more than four times that.