Transportation Roundtable: Regular Student Busing

The Community Roundtable on transportation that was held on Monday, Nov. 9, included lively discussion on a variety of topics. In order to keep the conversation going, we invite readers to post their thoughts on each question that was presented to participants at the Community Roundtable. Click here to read notes on what was discussed at the Community Roundtable.

The Broadalbin-Perth transportation department is responsible for safely transporting the district’s nearly 2,000 students to and from school each day, as well as to other schools for athletic competitions and other locations for field trips (see Discussion Question 2). The Broadalbin-Perth Central School District serves an area of approximately 200 square miles, and the 26 buses in the fleet drive approximately 500,000 miles per year.

Every day, 18 66-passenger school buses complete two runs – one for the Middle School and High School students, and one for The Learning Community and Intermediate School students. The fleet includes two additional 66-passenger buses that are used in case of emergency. In addition, the district maintains six vans to transport special education students to and from district buildings and out-of-district placements.

Although school-provided transportation is mandated by New York State, there are options that Broadalbin-Perth could consider to save money in its transportation budget:

• Currently, the district provides door-to-door pick-up for most students in the district. At certain locations within the district, Broadalbin-Perth could establish bus stops at which children from different households would be picked up and dropped off together.
• New York State allows school districts to restrict transportation for students who live within two miles of the school. These students would either have to walk to and from school or find alternative transportation. 

Given the current economic climate and the district’s financial situation, do you think the district should consider instituting bus stops in lieu of door-to-door pick-ups, when feasible? Should the district consider eliminating any transportation for students who live within two miles of the school?

Additional Information

• There are few sidewalks on Rt. 30, Rt. 29, Cty Hwy 107 and Cty Hwy 126, which presents a safety issue for children who walk to school. However, a village grant that is being used in conjunction with the school district is funding the construction of a sidewalk from The Learning Community to the Stewart’s Shop on the corner of Rt. 29 and S. Second Ave.