August 24, 2009

Bye-Bye, Busses?

School districts across the country cut school bus service to save money

By Andrea Delbanco

Will budget cuts cause your school routine to change this year? For thousands of families across the country, the answer is yes. According to a survey conducted by the American Association of School Administrators, there will be major cutbacks to yellow school bus service for the 2009-2010 school year.

DAVID J. PHILLIP—AP Feleccia Moore-Davis needs to find a new way to get her daughters to their school in the Houston, Texas, area, after budget problems shut down their bus route.

About 23% of school districts surveyed reported that they are reducing or entirely eliminating school transportation this year. Last year, 14% considered such cuts.

A Crippling Cost

Most states only pay for a small part of the cost of transportation. That leaves local school districts struggling to pay for most of the expensive service. School districts say that cuts to school bus service is a necessary cost-cutting measure.

For example, the school district that serves Brockton, Massachusetts, expects to save $500,000 by taking 10 school buses off of the road this year. That's in addition to the 20 busses that were cut last year.

Other areas, like the Novato Unified School District in California, are cutting all school bus service except for special-education students. It wasn't an easy choice. "We do have concerns for working parents, [and] how their kids will get to school," says Marla Blackledge, who works for the Novato district.

The Hard Road Ahead

For many affected families, cuts to school bus service will mean a big adjustment in their morning and afternoon schedules. Some people worry that the cuts will affect student attendance rates. Others worry about student safety as kids may be forced to walk across busy roads and highways to get to school. "There are families that need to have two jobs and can't just stop in the middle of the day to pick up their children," says Blackledge. "And they're concerned about the security of their children."

A Houston, Texas, school district recently announced that there would be no more school bus service for students living within two miles of the school. That includes the two daughters of Feleccia Moore-Davis. "I'm still trying to figure out how I will do this," she says.

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