Atlanta Public Schools School Bus Driver Guide
No CDL needed to apply. APS trains you for the commercial license and starts School Bus Operators at about $25.71/hr.
🎁 Limited-time: + free Georgia CDL Passenger & School Bus study guide
Atlanta Public Schools is the largest city school district in Georgia, enrolling roughly 50,000 students across 87 schools in Fulton and DeKalb Counties. The transportation department runs a fleet of roughly 400 buses out of its facility at 1661 Metropolitan Pkwy SW in Atlanta. APS does not publish a current driver headcount or shortfall, but it keeps School Bus Operator openings posted, and that steady hiring is your opening.
You do not need a commercial driver's license to apply. APS states that applicants without a CDL can be trained to get one, and its program runs about 2 to 4 weeks. APS has not published the hourly rate it pays trainees during that program, so this page does not guess at it. It covers the confirmed pay schedule, the work year, the Georgia physical, the screenings, and what to ask Transportation before you start.
Atlanta Public Schools at a glance
The essentials, pulled from official sources. The full pay tables, the exact application walkthrough, and the school calendar are in the guide.
How to become a School Bus Driver in Atlanta Public Schools
The path in order. The guide expands every step with the exact forms, links, and figures for Atlanta Public Schools.
Confirm you qualify before you apply
Georgia sets the minimum age for a School Bus Driver at 18 and sets no state driving-experience minimum, so APS sets its own. Confirm the current requirement with Transportation. Your driving record must meet the district's safe-driver standards. DUIs, license suspensions, and serious moving violations are disqualifying. A high school diploma or GED is preferred, not strictly required.
Apply online for "School Bus Operator"
APS takes applications through its Frontline AppliTrack job board at applitrack.com/atlantapublicschools/onlineapp, reached from atlantapublicschools.us. Search the title "School Bus Operator." Postings stay open until filled. Complete the full application and certify your driving and employment history accurately, because the background check will surface anything left out.
Interview with Transportation
APS has not published a standing walk-in policy or a transportation job-fair schedule. Call the Transportation Call Center at 404-802-5500 before visiting the facility, and use that call to ask about the next training class and the current starting rate.
Clear the screenings after your offer
After a conditional offer you complete a fingerprint criminal record check run through the Georgia Crime Information Center and the FBI, a DOT 5-panel drug screen, a DOT physical that earns your Medical Examiner's Certificate, and the separate Georgia school bus driver physical, taken within 60 days before employment. Georgia lets the local system or the applicant pay the fingerprint fee. APS has not confirmed who pays, so ask Transportation.
Earn your CDL in the APS training program
You need a Class B CDL with the P (passenger) and S (School Bus) endorsements, and APS trains you for it. Training starts with about one week of classroom instruction before you get behind the wheel, then range and road training. The program satisfies the federal entry-level driver training rule and Georgia's 24-hour initial training requirement, which must be finished before you drive students.
Complete training and start your route
The program usually runs about 2 to 4 weeks. After you pass the three-part skills test in a School Bus, you ride routes with an experienced trainer until you know yours, then drive solo. Full-time School Bus Operators move into 201-day assignments with a 6-hour daily guarantee, which points to benefits eligibility. Hourly operators are not benefits eligible.
What's in the full Atlanta Public Schools guide
35+ pages, twelve chapters, written in plain English — everything above in full detail, plus the parts that change year to year.
Right now, includes a free Georgia CDL Passenger & School Bus endorsement study guide — the exact material on the two written tests, so you pass the first time. Bundled with your Atlanta Public Schools guide at no extra cost, for a limited time.
The real pay tables
Every step of the Atlanta Public Schools pay scale, benefits, and the split-shift schedule — the numbers that decide if this fits your life.
The application, walked through
Exactly what to submit and which documents to attach, so you are not knocked out on a technicality.
The interview
The three things every interviewer is really asking, and what to highlight. (Free in the sample.)
Screenings & paid CDL training
Every screening after your offer, who pays for what, and how you are trained toward your CDL.
The school calendar
This year's Atlanta Public Schools calendar — work days, holidays, and breaks — so you know your real schedule.
Managing a bus full of kids
The passenger-management techniques veteran drivers swear by. (Also free in the sample.)
See inside before you buy
A few real pages from the manual — the interview and passenger-management chapters — so you can judge the quality yourself.
Atlanta Public Schools bus driver questions
Do I need a CDL to drive a School Bus for Atlanta Public Schools?
No. APS states that applicants without a CDL can be trained to get a Commercial Driver's License. You earn a Class B CDL with Passenger and School Bus endorsements through the district's program, and the district covers the CDL training itself.
How much do APS School Bus Operators make?
The 2026-27 APS salary schedule for School Bus Drivers and Operators with the 6-hour guarantee starts at $25.71 per hour at Step 1 and runs to $36.26 per hour at Step 29. The job is a 10-month position of 201 days, including 190 duty days and 11 paid holidays. Full-time operators are eligible for State Health Benefit Plan of Georgia coverage and participate in the Public School Employees Retirement System. APS has not published the hourly rate paid during training.
Are there bonuses or a union for APS School Bus Operators?
No 2026-27 sign-on or retention bonus program has been confirmed, so ask Transportation at 404-802-5500 whether any incentive is in effect. No union represents APS School Bus Operators, because Georgia has no public-sector collective bargaining law. The district's board and administration set pay, benefits, and working conditions.
What's the free CDL study guide?
For a limited time, every district guide comes bundled with a free study guide for your state's CDL Passenger and School Bus endorsements — the two written tests you'll take. It covers exactly what's on those tests so you can pass the first time, at no extra cost.
Is this an official guide from the School District?
No. It is an independent preparation guide, not affiliated with or endorsed by any School District. It organizes the public information into one clear manual so you do not have to dig for it.
How do I get the guide after I pay?
Instantly. Checkout takes about a minute, then you get a download link on the screen and by email. It is a PDF you can open on any phone, tablet, or computer and keep.
Get hired in Atlanta Public Schools.
The whole hiring process in one guide — pay, forms, contacts, and the calendar, all in order.