Get ready for some "wheely" troubling news. Some school districts are putting the brakes on school buses. Officials in several states, including California, Florida, and Texas, have cut school bus routes to save money. The changes mean that many students will have to find new ways to get to class.
The United States has a weak economy right now. As a result, many state and local governments have less money to give to schools. Eliminating some bus service is one way for school districts to spend less. Officials see it as a way to avoid cutting back on teachers or classroom supplies.
One school district in Massachusetts plans to save $500,000 by getting rid of 10 of its school buses this year. Another district, in Texas, will cut costs by not busing students who live within 2 miles of school.
Maria Blackledge, a school official in California, says her district had to stop bus service for all students except those with special educational needs. "We were trying to avoid hitting classrooms," she told reporters.
Those three districts aren't alone. Many others have made transportation cuts or are thinking of doing so.
How Will Kids Get to School?Those changes will affect a lot of kids. More than half of the country's 50 million school children ride a school bus to get to school. That adds up to about 480,000 school buses on the road every day.
The bus cuts may save schools money, but they could drive up problems for families. Some parents worry about missing work if they have to drive their children to and from school. Others are concerned about their kids crossing busy roads while walking to school.
"Cutting transportation services means that a certain number of students simply won't be able to get to school—because the distance is too far to walk, or the route is too hazardous, and there is no parent available to drive the student," Robin Leeds told Weekly Reader. Leeds is an industry specialist for the National School Transportation Association. "Reducing school bus service will likely result in significantly increased absenteeism."
Having fewer buses could also harm the Earth, Leeds says. "One school bus replaces an average of 36 private vehicles," she explains. "If we reduce school buses by just 5 percent, which some people say has already happened, our fuel consumption will increase by over a million gallons a year."
Just Use Your Feet?Some people think cutting back on school buses might actually be good for kids. In 1969, nearly 50 percent of children walked or bicycled to school. Today, that figure is down to just 15 percent. The Safe Routes to School National Partnership is a group that advocates having kids walk or bike to school. It says walking or biking to school helps kids stay fit and helps improve air quality. For many kids, though, the route to school is too far to walk, or too dangerous. The group is working with city and state officials to create safe routes to school.
On October 7, students across the country will participate in Walk to School Day. With school buses rolling to a stop, maybe walking is an idea whose time has come—again.
Everyone knows a school bus when they see one—mainly by its color. It's not just any yellow. It's National School Bus Glossy Yellow.
That particular yellow has been the official school bus color for quite a long time. It dates to 1939, when a professor named Frank W. Cyr, of Teachers College (part of Columbia University) in New York City, organized a conference. His mission was to establish national safety standards for school buses.
At that time, children were being transported to school in all sorts of vehicles, including trucks and horse-drawn wagons. Cyr’s conference attracted transportation specialists from all across the country. Paint specialists from the DuPont and Pittsburgh Paints companies came as well. After a week of discussion, the participants agreed on standards for bus construction and safety—and also for color. They determined that a particular shade of yellow-orange with black letters was the most visible combination in the early morning and late afternoon hours. They named that yellow color National School Bus Chrome. (The name and formulation have since been updated.)
Although school buses have changed a lot over the years, the color has stuck. And Cyr, who died in 1995, became known as the “"Father of the Yellow School Bus."
Critical thinking What are some things that city and town officials could do to make walking or biking to school safer for kids?
Vocabularyeconomy—everything included in making, selling, and buying products; in a strong economy, people have more money to spend
eliminating—getting rid of
hazardous—dangerous
absenteeism—ongoing or frequent absence (in this case, of students from school)
consumption—use
advocates—supports, favors
Links
- Find out how to stay safe while the wheels on the bus go 'round and 'round.
www.nhtsa.dot.gov/people/injury/buses/kidsschoolbus_en.html - Find out about the Safe Routes to School National Partnership and Walk to School Day.
www.saferoutespartnership.org
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