Berkeley Heights Still Has Time to Fix This

The transportation discussion within the BHPS District is multifaceted and, at the same time, all-over-the-place. There are underlying issues and some serious concerns on both sides of the spectrum that need to be addressed and properly understood.

Concerns of safety are legitimate; no one in their right mind would argue that safety shouldn’t be at the forefront of discussions surrounding student transportation to and from school. 

However, the issue then becomes a question about whether safety is the driving agent in the decision process for all when, a year ago, the bussing was rooted in a financial concern.

Some of the advocates for this policy today, threatened to remove all courtesy bussing last year to spare cutting administrative positions and legal spending (under the guise of sparing teacher positions) last year.  

We later discovered that this “crisis” was not the fiscal cliff the District made it out to be.

Some legitimate questions remain unanswered and while the District does need to figure out the transportation situation because time is of the essence, these concerns also deserve their time in the spotlight.

Policy and Regulation 8600: Student Transportation did not pass last night.

The main arguments from both sides boil down to a lack of data driving the decisions and language of both the policy and regulation versus using the recommendations from the consultants which (some believe) provide a clear guideline for designating what streets in Berkeley Heights should receive bussing. 

On February 26, the Transportation Consultants deemed Springfield Avenue HAZARDOUS, designating all students living on Springfield Avenue should get free bussing because it is unsafe for them to get to and from school. However, Policy 8600, the policy proposed last night did not include Springfield Avenue on its list of Hazardous roads. 

So, who, exactly is making these determinations and, without seeing how roads scored on the rubric, how does anyone know if the decisions are equitable?

Since there still seems to be some confusion regarding the discrepancy in data, we know know that a rubric was provided to the BOE (data was from Scotch Plains, not BH, even though they were paid to conduct a full study of BH) as a method and a means to generate scores for all streets in Berkeley Heights. 

This rubric was the foundation for making designations of “Hazardous Roads.” What is missing from this is the data to the rubric essentially that gives evidence to the designation and a numerical store. The argument from one side is that these numbers are an essential component to understand the policy while others argue that the scores for all of the roads in town would not help to better understand the policy and actually cause divisiveness.

To help explain and understand why some are insisting on seeing the data and its importance incorporated into the actual Policy, let’s put this into layman’s terms.

If you went to your doctor for blood work and, while at your appointment with your practitioner, they gave you a document naming all the tests performed, but not a single numeric or measurable result. What then if your doctor explained that you have high cholesterol and that it was unsafe for you? What if your doctor then told you he/she would not be giving you the actual results from your blood work, helping you better understand how high your cholesterol is? A typical reaction would likely be, “What is too high, and what is a normal cholesterol and how do I figure out how to make it better?”

The district has designated approximately 65 Hazardous roads in Policy 8600 outlining that the Board may provide free transportation to those residing in designated Hazardous roads. There is no designation or data about how unsafe these roads are (how they score on the rubric) or why (no sidewalks, no crosswalks, high traffic areas as examples) they have been deemed Hazardous.

There is no question that this policy is important. More important is ensuring all of our students and their families are safely getting to and from school each day. Not supporting this policy is not synonymous with disregarding the safety of our children. Likewise, supporting this policy is not akin to disregarding data or understanding it. The conversations around this policy are important because it provides adequate and necessary grounds for finding the best ways to serve our community, specifically keeping our students, staff and families safe. .

The policy should be clear in the sense that when the seats on our Board are filled with eight new members in the years to come that they should be able to, without a shadow of a doubt, address and reassess this policy and the Hazardous road designations by understanding the process of making a determination. There has to be a way to measure what constitutes a Hazardous road.

Some short term solutions to address transportation for the fall of 2024 are rooted in true equity. Putting aside those students who live more than 2 or 2.5 miles from school will be bussed; there is no question here. 

For the rest of those students who do not qualify, there are three solutions that have been discussed by our Board;

1. Everyone pays for bussing, no one is turned away, and those at the helm figure out how to make it work;

2. No one pays for bussing, and the Board sees where budgetary allowances would provide for his universal service;

3. Like our neighboring New Providence Public Schools, we do not offer bussing to students who do not qualify under state guidelines.

All scenarios presented here and in the future will involve logistical elements that require attention. There is no perfect solution, and the arguments made by all parties are valid. The task now is to meet in the middle and demonstrate compromise; this requires give and take.

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