School Buses at Capacity; More Than 1,000 Students Requested Seats

Three years ago, dealing with budget cuts and looking to save $500,000 the Framingham School District changed it school bus policy.

K-6 students who live within two miles of their school, would be ineligible for a seat on the school bus. After an outcry by many parents, the Framingham School Committee adopted a policy allowing parents with students within the two miles to petition for a seat on the bus at a cost of $270 a child or maximum $540 a family.

The School Committee policy prohibits adding a bus to the existing fleet, but allows families to petition for an empty seat on an existing route.

The first year, 130 students applied for a seat on a bus, said Framingham Schools Business Manager Ed Gotgart.

Last year more than 500 students applied for a seat on the buses, said Gotgart.

This year, more than 1,000 students applied for a seat, said Gotgart. That is about an 800% increase from the first year.

"We are out of space on the buses," said Gotgart. "We've put over a 1,000 people on the buses. We didn't add a bus. We had to be unbelievably creative."

Parents had until June 26 to apply for a seat on the bus, if their child was within 2 miles of their elementary school. Gotgart said all of those students were given a seat on a bus.

The school district continued to accept applications through July 15 and placed those requested students on buses, as well, said Gotgart.

The school district then accepted application through Aug. 9 for bus seats.
Gotgart said all families were given a seat on the bus, who applied between July 15 and Aug. 9, except for two student applications.

"In total, only 4 requests were denied through Aug. 9," said Gotgart.

Any applications that came in after Aug. 9, those families have been placed on a waiting list.

"We are clearly running out of room on the buses," said Gotgart.

Because the district is running out of room on the buses, Gotgart said his department plans to make a recommendation for the Framingham School Committee to review, and possibly change, its policy on ineligible riders.

One possibility is to give priority to students who live 1 to 2 miles from their school, and give lesser priority to students who live within one mile of their school.

Gotgart said personally he would not be in favor of a lottery for students who don't qualify for a bus, because a child who lives 0.3 miles from a school could get a bus seat over a child who lives 1.97 miles from a school.

When making bus routes, Gotgart said Framingham Public Schools Transportation Director Rick Gallagher fills seats first with students eligible for a bus. With an elementary bus, that would be students who live more than 2 miles from their school. Next, Gallagher, adds students, who are ineligible for a bus, to any remaining seats on a bus.

There is no priority given to ineligible bus students on free and reduced lunch, said Gotgart.

"Rick Gallagher does not know which students are on free and reduced lunch," said Gotgart. "He just knows if the seat is going to an eligible or ineligible student, not who pays and who doesn't for an ineligible seat."

Gotgart said there are always a handful of seats on the bus for families who move into the district during the school year. "Rick plans for that."

But basically, explained Gotgart "especially at the elementary bus level, there is no room on the buses. We are filled."

One reason there are more students on the buses could be that Framingham Public Schools has seen three consecutive kindergarten classes of more than 750 students.