MARIETTA, Ga. — Cobb County School District (CCSD) is keeping about 2,500 school bus stops that had been slated for elimination to save money.

After communicating with parents concerned about the cuts, district officials responded with a plan to save about a quarter of the 11,000 stops that were to be cut. CCSD had about 50,000 stops total.

A blog post on the CCSD Website said that input from the public helped maximize the efficiency of the process, and some stops will be improved based on the feedback.

District spokesperson Jay Dillon told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that the revised plan included adjusting the distance criteria: Stops for elementary students will be as close as a quarter of a mile to schools, while stops for middle- and high-schoolers will be as close as a half-mile.

To enhance safety and efficiency, stops were moved to locations where at least 10 to 15 students wait for buses, and some stops were moved off of busy streets.

Last week, as transportation department employees worked diligently to adjust and finalize the district’s bus routes for the coming school year, two school board members surprised them with a pizza luncheon to thank them for their hard work.

As noted in the district blog post, the event was an opportunity for the board members, David Banks and Lynnda Crowder-Eagle, to see the transportation facility and equipment firsthand. CCSD Transportation Director Rick Grisham introduced Banks and Crowder-Eagle to his staff.

School starts Monday for CCSD students.