Town Cuts Busing For Elementary Students
Shirley Cuts Transportation Budget By $220,000
POSTED: 5:51 pm EDT July 23,
2008
UPDATED: 5:48 pm EDT July 25,
2008
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BOSTON -- The town of Shirley will cut bus service for elementary students who live within two miles of schools when the academic year begins in September.
Town Cuts Busing NewsCenter 5's Janet Wu reported that the West family lives within two miles of the White Elementary School and just found out they won't qualify for bus service in September. The Wests leave the house early for work, had been counting on that bus to pick up their daughter, Wren, at a nearby day care provider.The $220,000 cut in the town's transportation budget means no bus, no sidewalk and few options."I'm sort of stuck in a place where I'm not sure where my solution is going to be," said Liz West.Beth Quinty lives closer and has sidewalk access, but now the crossing guard's job has been eliminated."It's a dangerous crossing. I keep close tabs on them and now the number of people there will multiple dramatically," Quinty said."We're also concerned about the traffic coming to school instead of one bus with 60 students. We may have 50 cars using gasoline to come to school and drop off kids at the same time," Superintendent Malcolm Reid said.With nearly 300 children from kindergarten to sixth grade with no bus service and a train track directly across from the middle school, is there any hope?"They help you map out routes to school that are safest for children," said Dina Samfield.Samfield is talking about a national program she found called Safe Routes to School. She hopes to organize one in Shirley with seminars and sessions to teach bike and skateboarding safety to the children and cooperation among parents."They will help you coordinate walking, so that other adults can walk a group of kids to school to make it safer," Samfield said.
Town Cuts Busing NewsCenter 5's Janet Wu reported that the West family lives within two miles of the White Elementary School and just found out they won't qualify for bus service in September. The Wests leave the house early for work, had been counting on that bus to pick up their daughter, Wren, at a nearby day care provider.The $220,000 cut in the town's transportation budget means no bus, no sidewalk and few options."I'm sort of stuck in a place where I'm not sure where my solution is going to be," said Liz West.Beth Quinty lives closer and has sidewalk access, but now the crossing guard's job has been eliminated."It's a dangerous crossing. I keep close tabs on them and now the number of people there will multiple dramatically," Quinty said."We're also concerned about the traffic coming to school instead of one bus with 60 students. We may have 50 cars using gasoline to come to school and drop off kids at the same time," Superintendent Malcolm Reid said.With nearly 300 children from kindergarten to sixth grade with no bus service and a train track directly across from the middle school, is there any hope?"They help you map out routes to school that are safest for children," said Dina Samfield.Samfield is talking about a national program she found called Safe Routes to School. She hopes to organize one in Shirley with seminars and sessions to teach bike and skateboarding safety to the children and cooperation among parents."They will help you coordinate walking, so that other adults can walk a group of kids to school to make it safer," Samfield said.Copyright 2009 by TheBostonChannel.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
