Study: Cutting school buses would increase carpool traffic
Hoover (Ala.) City Schools would likely have seen afternoon pickup times almost double at about one-quarter of its schools if it had moved forward with a plan to eliminate school bus service.
HOOVER, Ala. — A study shows that if the school board for Hoover City Schools had moved ahead on a plan to eliminate school buses, about three-quarters of its schools would have had significant jumps in carpool traffic, al.com reports.
The consultant who completed the study told the school board on Monday that 45% of the district’s students rode buses in the 2013-14 school year, and if those 145 buses were cut, that would add nearly 3,500 more cars to the district’s carpool lines, according to al.com. Additionally, the study showed that five schools would have seen afternoon pickup times almost double.
According to the study, ending school bus service would also require expanding to at least two carpool pickup lanes on most of the district’s school campuses, the news source reports.
The school board’s decision to end bus service for most students, starting in the 2014-15 school year, was rescinded in December 2013, and a revised plan to charge school bus fees was delayed. Meanwhile, interim Hoover schools Superintendent Jim Reese said he wanted a previously commissioned traffic study to be completed, according to the news source.
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