North Carolina’s Bus Ridership Week is Sep. 15-19

From press release:

September 15-19 is Bus Ridership Week in North Carolina. Each year the state determines transportation funding for school districts by how many students ride the bus both to and from school. Joe Hough, Transportation Director for Buncombe County Schools, says, “If a child is going to ride a school bus any time during the school year, it is very important that he or she ride the bus as many days possible during the week of the count.”

The state transportation budget was cut by $4 million this year, and Hough acknowledges the difficulties reduced funding can create. “Reduced funding could mean changes in service such as combining routes, double runs, and even a reduction in the number of buses operating,” said Hough.

State funding for buses are determined by three factors: the total number of buses operating, total expenditures, and the number of students riding buses, and that number will be determined September 15-19.

Buses are the safest way to get students to school, and they offer convenience to families who utilize them on a daily basis. Students riding the bus keep more cars off the road, especially in high-traffic areas near schools, and the school system currently provides transportation for 17,000 students a day, and buses travel around 17,000 miles per day. To ensure continued funding it is important to have each of those students on the bus as many times during bus ridership week as possible. “It’s hard to beat the safety, convenience, and reliability of the neighborhood school bus,” said Hough.