DEPTFORD TWP., N.J. (KYW Newsradio) — With just weeks to go before the start of the school year, the superintendent and board of education on Friday announced a major change to the school transportation plan that would have eliminated bus service for hundreds of students. It caused such a stir among parents and township officials that it was rescinded on Monday.
Superintendent Kevin Kanauss on Friday announced that free busing for kids who live within 2 miles of their elementary or middle school, or within 2.5 miles of their high school, would come to an end. Under the new plan, only students living further out would have been eligible for a free ride.
Students who live closer would have to walk or be driven to school. Alternatively, their parents could opt to pay $365 per student for a seat on the bus — and if that student were to miss three rides, they would be required to give up their spot.
Kanauss said the decision to cut back on busing was a financial one, and the money saved by the district would be reallocated to security, renovations and other services.
“It's absurd. It's insane and I don't know who or how they can make this decision consciously,” said Lisa Koncelik, whose 9-year-old daughter would have been one of an estimated 1,800 students affected.
Koncelik, like many parents, had concerns about safety.
“No sidewalks, no crossing walks, no stop signs, no red lights — and that crazy little intersection …. She could get ran over. She can get hit. Anything could happen,” Koncelikm said.
Add to that the traffic tie-ups that would come with a sudden influx of more parents on the road before and after school than before.
Over the weekend, families who were caught off guard weren’t sure how their kids would get to and from school starting next month. Parents scrambled to make backup plans.
Mayor Paul Medany says there was a meeting late last week, at which some council members were informed there would be changes to the school transportation plan, but he says they were never shown a detailed plan, report, or study.
Medany, with other township officials, sent a letter to the superintendent and the school board Monday afternoon, asking them to rescind the decision.
“Kids will be walking on the shoulder of the road, and it's a completely disastrous, unsafe condition. We cannot let that happen,” Medany wrote.
“Deptford Township is not a walkable school district, it never had been. Busing has always been provided to kids.”
Just hours later, Kanauss announced the school board would not move forward with the plan, after all. After careful consideration of the feedback they received, a decision was made to rescind the new transportation plan.
“Deptford Township Schools will continue courtesy transportation to the individual buildings that have received it in the past,” he wrote.
Kanauss promised further analysis of the budget and transportation costs, with the long-term goal of ensuring safe, adequate and efficient transportation.
Correction: A previous version of this article misspelled the superintendent's last name. The current story reflects that change.