5 key takeaways from HopSkipDrive's 2021 Safety Report – HopSkipDrive

HopSkipDrive is the leader in innovative, safe and scalable school transportation solutions. And safety at HopSkipDrive is “always on.” Our relentless approach to safety enables us to go above and beyond industry norms with everything we do, including certifying CareDrivers, monitoring each ride in real-time and influencing industry-wide safety standards. 

As we continue to lead the way as the number-one platform for safe youth transportation, we’re committed to ensuring that safety remains the top priority with every decision we make. Whether it’s through new platform features or through our continued efforts to provide greater transparency within the industry, HopSkipDrive remains steadfastly focused on using our data to drive iterative improvement.

With our latest Safety Report, we examined data collected from 2021, during which time a total of 7 million safe miles were driven by HopSkipDrive CareDrivers across 18 markets. During this time, the majority of all rides scheduled through the HopSkipDrive platform — 99.699% — ended without a safety-related issue of any kind.

We encourage you to read the full 2021 Safety Report to get a complete picture of just how far we go to continually raise the bar on safety, but you can review five key takeaways from the report below.

1. 0.000% of HopSkipDrive rides experienced a critical safety incident.

Consistent with previous years, an overwhelming majority of rides scheduled through the HopSkipDrive platform — 99.699% — ended without a safety-related issue of any kind. In addition, 100% of all rides ended without a critical safety incident.

For the small percentage of rides that did experience a safety-related concern, only 0.020% of those experienced a traffic collision while either en route to the pickup location or while the CareDriver was transporting a Rider. For rides experiencing a traffic collision, only 0.004% were considered to be major.*

*A major collision is defined as one in which one of the vehicles was towed away from the scene or medical attention was needed, including just to get checked out by a professional.

2. The total number of safe rides delivered through the HopSkipDrive platform more than doubled from the previous year. 

With the ongoing bus driver shortages exacerbated by COVID-19, school districts struggled to resume normal transportation operations in 2021. HopSkipDrive quickly became a solution for many schools across the country, helping get kids back to campus and providing a cost-effective solution.

Throughout 2021, HopSkipDrive was able to serve a more extensive general education population. We also expanded operations with the launch of three new markets: Austin, Madison and Milwaukee.

3. CareDrivers continue to be some of the safest drivers on the road.

Even with more CareDrivers back on the road than the prior year, the average safe driving score for CareDrivers in 2021 was 87.3 — an improvement of 1.0% from the previous year and 2.4% from 2019.

This increase year over year confirms that CareDrivers are not only safer on the road than average drivers but they also continue to show safety improvements even as the roads get more dangerous every year.

4. We upped our investment in safety in 2021 by launching new features within the CareDriver app and the RideIQ platform.

Ongoing innovation and improvements are essential to our mission, the effectiveness of our RideIQ technology platform — and our focus on safety as the number-one priority. With continued advancements in our technology, we’re coming up with new ways to ensure our Riders, CareDrivers, Ride Organizers, and parents and caregivers have everything they need, right at their fingertips. 

Data has become an integral part of allowing for new ways to mitigate risk. Telematics solutions allow for raw sensor data from a user’s mobile device to be turned into critical insights that provide real-time information about driving habits, allowing for a better understanding of risk and predictive behaviors.

5. CareDrivers feel safe using the HopSkipDrive platform. 

A recent survey of HopSkipDrive CareDrivers asked them to rate how safe they felt while driving on the HopSkipDrive platform. On average, participants rated safety on the platform as being a 9 out of 10 in comparison to other rideshare platforms.

Since most rides occur during the day, HopSkipDrive provides a solution for individuals in need of a safer option, making the platform a far more attractive option for empty-nesters or recent retirees who prefer the advance scheduling features that HopSkipDrive provides.

“I decided to become a CareDriver because I was retired from teaching. I had been in the field for 30 years, and I knew I didn’t want to go back into the classroom,” says Los Angeles-based CareDriver Dolores Seifert (pictured left). “HopSkipDrive gave me the opportunity to have some extra income and yet still be working with children.”

Read the full 2021 Safety Report here.