Busing Concerns Are Discussed, But No Action Is Recommended

By Naomi Hatch
   Several parents have express concern regarding the busing of Snowflake School District students this school year. Due to budget constraints buses do not go off paved roads.
   Superintendent Hollis Merrill gave a brief summary of the complaints he has received, stating “Mike (Robinson, transportation director) and I have driven the route or gone to the area of the complaint.”
   Residents who live on Hereford Road have expressed concern to district officials about the distance students have to walk to the bus stop. Harvest Valley residents want the bus to go onto dirt roads. Merrill noted they moved the bus stop to get it away from a dangerous corner, but they do not go off the highway. Snowflake Heights residents expressed concern about not going off the highway. Merrill noted they have not gone off the highway there for years due to time constraints and in order to keep within the budget.
   Concerns were also expressed about the half-mile radius that the bus does not pick up students, because parents don’t know if it is closer to walk away from the school to the bus stop or to walk directly to the school.
   A petition was received from a group of parents who live on Highway 277 that expressed concern regarding safety when the bus stops to pick up students on highway.   There was concern that vehicles are traveling the highway at a high rate of speed.
   There was a complaint that they do not allow students to cross Highway 277, that instead they must stay on the bus while it goes to the end of that route and comes back to let them off the bus on the other side of the road. Merrill said he feels strongly that that is a safety issue, commenting that there are several cases where a driver becomes inpatient and passes the bus while the lights are flashing. He added that the bus driver turns these license plate numbers over to the police department.
   “As I’ve looked at these, taking a lot of time and effort, at this time I don’t have any recommendations for changes. If we made any one of these changes, we’d have to say we’re going to have to restore these routes as before,” said Merrill.
   “It’s unfortunate, I don’t like it. I wish we could provide the service we used to with our busing, but that’s the times we’re in. Again, I don’t like that at all, but again after driving the routes, I don’t recommend any changes.”
   Board member John Stewart suggested that when possible, the police department patrol Highway 277.
   Merrill noted that he is meeting with Police Chief Jerry VanWinkle and will discuss this.
   In response to a question posed by board member Ashley Davis, Merrill said that Robinson reported there were more children riding the bus this year than last year, requiring some adjustment to routes.
   Merrill explained to the board that bus drivers are doing their best to pull off the road and let people around them, noting, “They try to be cognizant of those.”
   Due to the number of complaints and the fact that this item was requested to be on the agenda, Board President Travis Tenney asked if there was anyone in the audience who had comments.
   One gentleman responded, saying, “You did a good job explaining it to me. I guess it wasn’t very important, because none of them are here.”
   Tenney said, “This is a long shot, I don’t know if it’s financially possible or not, especially going into what’s going to be what everyone’s talking is harder economic times or even more budget cuts,” then asked if there was any way they could purchase a bus or two buses each year.
   Merrill responded that buses are $100,000 each, and there would be no way they can replace the whole fleet.
   Tenney said he felt it could be a slow process, then asked if they have the facilities to maintain and repair buses. “To me, I am concerned if we don’t have any competition bidding it, we don’t have any bargaining power,” he commented.
   It was pointed out that for more than 10 years, the district has only received one bid when seeking to purchase buses. Davis said, “It’s a good thing that one company bid.”