Spare-driver ratio

Definition

Drivers held above the number the routes need, so an absence does not cancel a run.

Why It Matters

A route that does not run is a contract breach and not a bad day, and the district notices. Because a driver takes months to credential and not a week, the ratio is the operational number that decides whether a contractor can bid the next route or has to decline it. Read it against the vacancy history instead of the payroll: a contractor running at zero spare is one illness away from a penalty and cannot grow at all.