Frequently Asked Questions

Find answers to common questions about using RouteBot.

Getting Started

How do I create my account?

Visit the RouteBot website, click Sign Up, and enter your information. You'll receive a verification email to confirm your account. See Getting Started for detailed steps.

Can I try RouteBot before purchasing?

Yes! When you first sign up, you can explore the system with demo data. This lets you see how all features work before entering your own data.

How do I reset my password?

Click "Forgot Password" on the login screen, enter your email, and follow the instructions sent to your inbox.

What browsers are supported?

RouteBot works best on modern browsers:

Google Chrome (recommended)
Mozilla Firefox
Microsoft Edge
Safari

Managing Data

How do I add students or employees?

Go to Directory in the navigation, select the appropriate tab (Students, Employees, Parents, or Drivers), and click the "Create New" button. See our user management guides for detailed instructions.

Note: The "Employees" tab was previously called "Passengers" in older versions.

Why isn't my student showing in the route assignment?

Check that the student:

Has verified pickup and drop-off addresses
Is set to "Active" status
Is assigned to the correct school

See Managing Students for more help.

How do I link a parent to a student?

Open the student record
Find the "Parent Information" section
Click "Add Parent"
Search for an existing parent or create a new one
Save the student record

Can one parent be linked to multiple students?

Yes! Parents can be linked to multiple students (like siblings). Each link is created from the student record.

How do I verify an address?

Open the student or employee record
Enter the address in the address field
Click "Get Location from Address"
Check that the map pin is in the correct location
Drag the pin if needed to adjust
Save the record

Stops

What are stops and when should I use them?

Stops are predefined pickup/drop-off locations for personnel transportation. Use stops when:

You want employees to gather at central pickup points (e.g., metro stations)
You need to simplify routes by reducing individual addresses
You're managing large numbers of employees in similar areas

See Stops for detailed information.

How do I create a stop?

Go to Stops in the navigation
Click "Create New Stop"
Select the company/client
Enter a name and address
Verify the location on the map
Save the stop

How do I assign an employee to a stop?

Open the employee record in Users > Employees
Find the stop assignment fields
Select the appropriate pickup (Get On) and drop-off (Get Off) stops
Save the employee record

Shifts and Shift Management

What's the difference between Shifts and Shift Management?

Shifts page: Create and configure shift definitions (times, days, names)
Shift Management page: Manage daily operations, service assignments, and employee distribution

Use Shifts to set up your shift structure, then use Shift Management for daily operations.

How do I assign employees to a shift?

Open the employee record
Enable "Uses Shifts" option
The employee can now be added to shift-based services
Use Shift Management to assign them to specific services

Why don't I see the Shift Management page?

Shift Management requires the Shifts permission. Check with your administrator if you need access to this feature.

Does changing a shift automatically rebuild its shuttles?

Changing an employee's shift updates membership. Assigning that employee to a shuttle updates the selected service. Review the affected services and optimize their stop order and times when needed; those changes do not regenerate the whole fleet. To calculate a new group of shuttles, use Automated Shuttle Operations > Create Shuttles, review the result, and Approve Shuttles. See Shift Management.

Routes and Services

What's the difference between a route and a service?

In the Routes menu the tabs are named by who rides:

Student Routes are school bus runs
Bundled Routes put several schools on one vehicle, when that tab is enabled
Employee Routes, Shift Employee Routes, and Transfer Routes are employee shuttles
Tours are one-day trips

The help articles still say "route" and "service" for the same record. The tab name is what you click.

How do I optimize a route?

Open the route
Add students/employees
Click "Show Map"
Click the "Optimize" button
The system reorders stops for efficiency
Save the route

This optimizes the stops already assigned to that one service. Generating several routes from a roster is a separate action; see Route Optimization.

Can the same line have several departures each day?

Yes. Create separate service records for departures that need independent times and tracking history. For example, 07:00 and 09:00 pickups use two service records. Restarting the same service on the company's local day can reuse its daily journey rather than creating a separate trip history. See Student Routes and Personnel Services.

Do Operating Days hide a service from the driver app?

No. An empty weekday selection means Monday through Friday for schedule-based calculations, but the selection does not hide the service in the driver list. It supports configured planning/timesheet tools and connected device service tracking. For date-specific services, the service date is used.

What counts toward my route limit?

Saved student routes, personnel services, and bundled routes count separately. A pickup and a return route count as two; repeating a saved service on another day does not consume another slot. Setting it to Inactive does not remove the saved record from the count. See Subscription and Billing.

Does spreadsheet import require a template?

The student and route spreadsheet flow at app.routebot.com/start reads Excel/CSV columns without a fixed template and asks you to review the data before saving. Transfers > Upload Transfer File is a separate, company-specific process whose file layout depends on Select Process. Follow that process's instructions for dated transfer lists. See Getting Started and Transfers.

Can I manually reorder stops?

Yes! You can drag and drop passengers in the list to change the order. The map updates to show your changes.

What's the difference between pickup and drop-off routes?

Pickup routes: Collect passengers from home, deliver to school/company
Drop-off routes: Collect from school/company, deliver to home

Set the route type when creating the route.

Notifications

How do SMS notifications work?

Parents/passengers with valid phone numbers receive automatic notifications when:

The vehicle is approaching their location
Their passenger is picked up or dropped off
There are delays or changes

Why isn't a parent receiving notifications?

Check that:

The parent is linked to the student
The parent has a valid phone number
The phone number is in the correct format
The route is set to Active

Can I send manual SMS messages?

Yes! Open any route and go to the SMS Management tab to send custom messages to parents/passengers on that route.

Accounting

How do I create a contract?

Go to Accounting > Contracts
Click "Create New Contract"
Select the student
Choose a service template
Apply any discounts
Save the contract

How do I record a payment?

Go to Accounting > Receipts
Click "Create New Receipt"
Select the contract
Enter the payment amount
Save the receipt

The contract balance updates automatically.

Can I apply discounts?

Yes! Create discount types in Accounting > Discounts, then apply them when creating contracts.

Live Tracking

How do I track vehicles in real-time?

Click Live in the navigation to see all active services and their current locations on a map.

Why isn't a vehicle showing on the map?

Check that:

The service/route is set to Active
The vehicle has GPS tracking enabled
The service is within its operating hours
There's a good GPS signal

Team and Permissions

How do I invite a team member?

Go to Settings > Team
Click "Invite New User"
Enter their name and email
Select their school access and permissions
Send the invitation

Can I limit what a team member can see?

Yes! When setting up permissions:

Choose which feature categories they can access
Select which schools they can view
They only see data for their assigned areas

How do I remove someone's access?

Go to Settings > Team
Select the team member
Click "Remove User"
Confirm the removal

Technical Issues

The map isn't loading. What should I do?

Try these steps:

Refresh the page
Check your internet connection
Clear your browser cache
Try a different browser
Contact support if the issue persists

Data seems slow to update. Why?

Large datasets may take a moment to load
Check your internet connection speed
Try refreshing the page
Wait a few seconds and try again

I'm seeing an error message. What should I do?

Note the exact error message
Try the action again
Refresh the page and try again
Contact support with the error details if it persists

Best Practices

How often should I review my data?

We recommend:

Weekly: Check data validation for issues
Monthly: Review routes and assignments
Each term: Full review and updates

What's the best way to set up a new school year?

Create a new service period
Review all student status (Active/Inactive)
Update any address changes
Review and update routes
Create new contracts

How do I keep addresses accurate?

Always verify addresses when entering them
Check the map pin is in the correct location
Update addresses when families move
Run data validation regularly

Newer Screens

Why is Bundled Routes missing?

The tab is off until the feature is enabled for the company. Until then, use one Student Route per school. See Bundled Routes.

What is a tour?

A tour is a one-day trip, not a repeating shuttle. It lives on the Tours tab. See Tours.

Where do school requests show up?

In Requests on the top bar. If the item is missing, the feature is off. Invite the school from Settings > School contacts. See School Requests.

Is Telemetry the same as Track Vehicle?

No. Personel Services and Student Routes follow the driver's phone. Telemetry follows a device on the vehicle, and only when that connection is turned on. Both sit under Track Vehicle.

Support

How do I contact support?

Email us at support@routebot.com with:

Your account email
Description of your issue
Screenshots if helpful
Any error messages you see

Where can I find more help?

Browse this help center
Check specific feature guides
Contact support for personalized help

Related Pages:

Troubleshooting - Solve common problems
Getting Started - Setup guide
Welcome - Overview of RouteBot