Town receives ‘hundreds’ of fee-based bus transportation applications

FRAMINGHAM, Mass. — The town of Framingham has received “hundreds” of applications for fee-based school bus transportation, according to Michael Bower, chair of the Framingham School Committee. 

A story on boston.com reports that school officials said the fee for riders ineligible for free bus transportation could be $270 to $500, with a family cap of $675 to $1,250. The fee will be determined, in part, by the number of applicants.

The School Committee will discuss the issue at a meeting on Thursday night and will provide a detailed proposal with fees next Tuesday in anticipation of the Framingham special town meeting, which starts on Oct. 19.

“If we can get kids on the buses, it will alleviate the traffic in the morning,” Bower told the news source. “That’s the highest priority — to get that under control.”

In the meantime, a local parent is sponsoring a town meeting warrant article that would force officials to appropriate money from other parts of the town’s budget to restore school bus transportation. (The School Committee approved scaled-back busing this year to save $500,000. Only students who live at least two miles away from their schools can ride buses.)