Ask the Superintendent - August 6, 2008
The Goshen Central School District has long
prided itself on providing safe transportation to
our students. During the past few school years, many
bus routes have included frequent stops so that
students could be picked up and dropped off closer
to their homes. Many of these bus stops have
exceeded the district’s long-standing policy for
students to walk up to either one-half mile to their
bus stop or to their school.
However, financial
pressures and the economic climate have seriously
impacted the way in which we must now transport our
students. It’s no secret that the cost of fuel is on
the rise – there is evidence of that every time you
fill your car’s gas tank. The district is feeling
the same pinch at the pump, so to speak, and changes
are inevitable. As early as March 2008, we knew we
were going to have to reduce our transportation fuel
consumption, and in order to do so, the District has
consolidated its bus routes and bus stops to reflect
the half-mile policy.
With the opening of
the 2008/09 school year less than one month away,
the Transportation Department has been very busy
working to consolidate certain bus routes and create
many new bus stops for the students who are bused to
our schools. The bus route/bus stop revisions were
carefully planned by the Transportation Department,
in conjunction with administration and the members
of the Board of Education.
By eliminating certain stops on some side streets,
cul-de-sac and neighborhood sections, the District
will reduce many miles traveled – and reduce many
gallons of fuel necessary to fill our buses’ tanks.
Additionally, these revised routes will also create
smoother traffic patterns during the busiest hours
of the day.
These new changes
may find many students, with parental supervision,
walking up to one-half mile to their newly
designated bus stop. Information about the pick-up
time and location of all new bus stops will be
mailed to each student’s family by late August.
It is important
that parents of Kindergarten students meet their
child at their afternoon bus stop or have a parent
designee present when the bus arrives. If no
parent/designee is available, the parent will be
immediately notified and the child will be returned
to Scotchtown Avenue Elementary School where they
must wait until they are picked up by the
parent/designee.
It is our continued
goal to safely transport our students to and from
our buildings while attempting to ease the cost of
fuel consumption. Although the district can not
control the cost of fuel, it CAN control how much
fuel is used each day. I would like to thank the
community in advance for its cooperation and
understanding as we strive to meet the many economic
challenges that face our district.
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