Questions to The 2023 Berkeley Heights BOE Candidates – Question 2

The Second in a Series of Questions to the 2023 Berkeley Heights, NJ BOE Candidates

The Courtesy Bussing issue appears to be yet another scandal under this administration and a costly one at that.  Transportation has been extraordinarily problematic under this administration.
 
What factors do you believe have fed into the multitude of issue connected to Busing in the last 3-4 years?
 
In your opinion, what can the District do to improve the busing situation? 

I think there are several contributing factors to the bussing issues:

1. Re-configuration and FDK created a greater need for bussing as kids who once could walk to school needed transportation, and there were more kids in schools.
2. Courtesy bussing is bleeding money from the transportation budget. It’s difficult to say how much because we have not seen anything from the administration regarding courtesy bussing data. But if we take the numbers reported to the state (approximately 230 students) and multiply them by $1000, that is potentially a $230k loss in revenue. That money could be used for additional drivers and/or increased salaries to attract more drivers. It could mean additional routes and anyone who would like to purchase subscription bussing can do so. Last but certainly not least, where is the EQUITY? Why do some residents have to pay while others don’t? 
3. Bus driver shortages have been reported across the state.

Exacerbating the above is our administration’s and BOE’s lack of action. Back at the March 30th meeting, Ms. Stanley raised the issue of courtesy bussing and the inequity it creates. She was so passionate about the issue that she wanted to add something into policy. Mr. Cianciulli offered that we should take the time “do it right” rather than take any action immediately. As of the September 14th meeting (5 and half months after the March 30th meeting), the Board is still looking for a third party. To do what exactly? Don’t we know how many kids get courtesy bussing? And if we don’t know, what exactly are we reporting to the state? The longer this takes, the longer the inequity continues, and the longer we bleed revenue.

The solution to this is transparency and accountability. The first step is to document what’s currently being done and why. How do certain families qualify? What are the criteria? Share any available data with the BOE. That will help inform the remediation plan. In the short term, the best way to achieve equity is to send a bill to families with an option to discontinue the service. The bill can be prorated off a future date (let’s say a month from the notice being sent). This will allow them some time to decide whether to pay for bussing or use alternate transportation. A longer-term plan could involve making certain areas more walkable by adding sidewalks.

But nothing can be done until the data is available. I would like the BOE and the Transportation Supervisor to explain the available data. I would like the BOE to clarify why they are seeking a third party (an additional expense) for a survey to present the information we are already acting on but yet to be available to the public. It feels more like a stall tactic.

I would also like the BOE to commit to a date, even an interim date, for addressing this issue. Otherwise, this will continue to delayed with the hope the community gets tired of asking about it.

Concerning the bus driver shortage, this is the most challenging issue to solve. I would review surrounding districts to understand how they deal with the problem. I would compare salaries as this is likely the most significant motivating factor in attracting qualified drivers. The additional revenue from courtesy bussing may help fund the higher wages. 

Thank you for giving me an opportunity. The major factor contributing to the transportation and busing issue is reconfiguring and redistricting of our elementary schools in 2021.

I have been present and questioned the namesake of a traffic study done only at elementary schools in 2021. Then board president Mr. Reinstein acknowledged that they did not conduct a consolidated traffic study before declaring that we have no unsafe roads in town.

Many students in our neighborhood walked to the nearest elementary school William Woodruff until 2021. Or they took the bus to MKM Early Childhood Center and Governor Livingston depending on which grade they attended. I believe the intent of the early town planners was to have easy walkable paths to Elementary schools that children could walk to or ride a bicycle to.

Here’s the timeline of events for busing in our district:

1. Berkeley Heights public school district was incorporated after separating from the regional and provided busing to all Elementary school students living 2 miles from school and 2.5 miles to High school.
2. The mandatory busing was paid for and included in the annual school budget.
3. BHPS offered subscription busing in 2018 

Everyone in the community believed that there are ONLY two forms of transportation –

• Free qualified busing as mandated by the state
• Paid subscription busing costing about $800-$1000 per student.

Flash forward to 2021 after redistricting and reconfiguration of elementary schools, the superintendent, Board, and Berkeley Heights Police Department after a quick traffic study state there are NO Hazardous roads in town to and from schools even with elementary students having to cross over train tracks.

The district administration nor the elected Board members ever informed the community that the school district was also providing free courtesy busing to students living under 2 miles and 2.5 miles from elementary schools and high school for many years. The cost of courtesy busing was being borne by the taxpayers of Berkeley Heights.

Some known facts about courtesy busing based on information provided by the business administrator during budget meetings, reports submitted to State Dept of education, minutes from finance committee meetings and Email responses to parents by Dr.Varley:

1. Courtesy busing costs are incorporated into the school budget and paid for by tax dollars
2. No documented criteria for who qualifies for free courtesy busing. 
3. There is a mention of historic preference to some parts of town (no clarity on what the actual historical precedent was based on)
4. District has been busing anywhere from 300-450 Students every year for the last 8 years per the DRTRS summary report to State Dept of Education.
5. The transportation head was certified the number of 337 courtesy busing students last October in 2022 
6. District business administrator and board members reported that we had 200 courtesy busing students in March and April 2023 budget meetings
7. Parents email the board asking how some students are being denied subscription busing while some qualify for free courtesy busing. 

For a long term solution, the district administration and the board need to provide answers to the following:

1. What’s the actual cost of transportation for courtesy busing that taxpayers are on the hook for?
2. Why is there a discrepancy in the total number of courtesy busing students being reported to the NJ state department of education and our budget?
3. What is the total number of students being transported in the current year 2023-24 – Mandated free, courtesy and subscription busing?
4. How do our district goals of include, inspire and empower coincide with NO criteria for courtesy busing?
5. How is this fair and equitable to offer free courtesy busing to hundreds of students while charging $1000 for the very same busing service?

The solution to the busing issue is to send a bill to all students who are currently being courtesy bussed, this way it is fair and equitable. Unsure as to what a third party will do in terms of a study. This is just kicking the can down the road without addressing the busing issue.

The district administration – Superintendent and board Administrator need to be held accountable for providing actual transportation data to the community along with a timeline for planned activities.

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