Two Texas County school districts received perfect scores during the Missouri State Highway Patrol’s annual bus inspection, the agency said.
They are Cabool and Plato. Among them, they maintain 30 buses.
At Houston, 14 of its 17-bus fleet were approved. One was deemed defective, two are out of service. Sixteen were approved at Licking; one was deemed defective.
At Success, four of its five buses were approved and one was deemed defective. At Raymondville, two were approved, one was deemed defective and one is out of service. At Summersville, 10 of its 12 buses were approved and two were deemed defective.
Missouri’s 2026 school bus inspection results are as follows:
- School buses rated as “approved” upon initial inspection: 10,239
- School buses rated as “defective” upon initial inspection: 849
- School buses rated as “out-of-service” upon initial inspection: 283
Buses with identified defective components require repair within 10 days. Buses placed out-of-service require correction of the component(s), reinspection and a return to service by Patrol personnel prior to further usage in transporting passengers.
A total of 287 Missouri school districts earned the Patrol’s Total Fleet Excellence Award for 2026. During the 2025-2026 school year, 6,148 buses in the award-winning fleets are eligible to display the Patrol’s Total Fleet Excellence sticker in the lower corner of the first window on the passenger entry side of the bus.
“Through the unified effort of Missouri State Highway Patrol personnel and pupil transportation professionals statewide, the successful inspection of over 11,000 school buses occurred in accordance with Missouri revised state statutes,” said Col. Michael A. Turner. “The annual inspection of school buses is one of many ways the Patrol, Missouri schools and private pupil transportation companies work together to ensure the safety of children while they travel on school buses.”
Missouri school bus inspection results are a matter of public record. Individual school district results for 2026 are available on the Patrol’s website.
