LODI, Calif. — Lodi Unified School District officials reversed a decision to charge parents pay-to-ride fees for school bus transportation after receiving input from the school board and parents.

Only one bus pass had been purchased as of last week, the Lodi News-Sentinel reports. Parents of the district's 6,600 daily riders had until July 27 to pay $360 per child for bus service for the 2010-11 school year. Many said they would transport children themselves instead of paying the fee.

The district's transportation department had proposed the fee to make a dent in the $2 million in budget cuts it had to make. Instead, the department will meet budget requirements through layoffs and other cuts, as well as implementing a hub system that will consolidate rural stops and save $550,000 annually, officials say.

The board plans to revisit the bus pass fee program later this year for possible implementation in the 2011-12 school year.

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