End of the line for kids' free rides?Byline: Jeff Wright Jeff Wright can refer to:
Fifteen-year-old Nick Thomas Nick Thomas (b.1968) is a Welsh politician and member of Plaid Cymru. Nick Thomas is standing for the Bridgend constituency in the National Assembly for Wales election, 2007. Nick Thomas was born in Bridgend and now lives in Porthcawl. heard the rumor from another rider on the Lane Transit District A transit district or transit authority is a special-purpose district organized as either a corporation chartered by statute, or a government agency, created for the purpose of providing public transportation within a specific region. bus that he boards each morning for Sheldon High School Sheldon High School may refer to:
"They're thinking of taking it away," he said, referring to the hugely popular Student Transit Pass Program that allows 27,000 middle and high school students to ride the bus for free. "I'll have to get someone to pick me up." The free bus program, initiated in 2005, has proven enormously successful: LTD LTD 1 Laron-type dwarfism 2 Leukotriene D 3 Long-term depression, see there 4. Long-term disability estimates about 6,000 middle and high school students jump on an LTD bus each school day - accounting for about half of the increase in ridership rid·er·ship n. The number of passengers who ride a public transport system. seen in recent years. But the program, subsidized sub·si·dize tr.v. sub·si·dized, sub·si·diz·ing, sub·si·diz·es 1. To assist or support with a subsidy. 2. To secure the assistance of by granting a subsidy. by the state Department of Energy with an assist from Pacific Continental Bank, may end June 30 - and LTD, school and state officials have yet to find a way to keep it running beyond then. LTD has offered a cut-rate Group Pass Program to area schools - $3.68 per month per enrolled student - for the 2007-08 school year, but officials in the Eugene, Bethel Bethel, in the Bible Bethel (bĕth`əl) [Heb.,=house of God]. 1 Ancient city of central Palestine, the modern Baytin, the West Bank, N of Jerusalem. and Springfield school districts have said they can't afford it. Even with tax credits and state reimbursements, that works out to about $200,000 annually to the Eugene School District Eugene School District (4J) is a public school district in the U.S. state of Oregon. It serves the city of Eugene Elementary schools
"We don't have the funding, with all our other priorities, to subsidize everything," said Hillary Kittleson, the school district's finance director. "We just concluded that it was too much money." A handful of smaller private schools, such as the Network Charter School in downtown Eugene, have signed up for the group bus pass program. LTD, meanwhile, says continuing the program on its own would cost nearly $600,000 per year, too large a chunk in the district's $33 million operating budget Noun 1. operating budget - a budget for current expenses as distinct from financial transactions or permanent improvements budget items, operating cost, operating expense, overhead - the expense of maintaining property (e.g. . "We'd have to take it out of other operating expenses Operating expenses The amount paid for asset maintenance or the cost of doing business, excluding depreciation. Earnings are distributed after operating expenses are deducted. , and that means cutting staff, cutting service or raising other fares," spokesman Andy Vobora said. "It's a trade-off." The bus pass plan is possible because of an energy tax credit program that the state energy department extends to businesses that spend money on energy-saving projects. Because LTD doesn't pay taxes, it needed to find a "pass-through partner" that does - in this case, Pacific Continental Bank. But confusion has emerged as to why, or if, the program must end. Vobora said LTD assumed the energy department was making the program available under a "research and development" grant that would not be extended indefinitely. A review of regulations led transit district officials to conclude that the program would not be continued, he said. But Diana Enright, assistant director at the energy department, said the department views the LTD project as a standard bus pass program that could continue indefinitely - so long as LTD keeps reapplying and has an appropriate "pass-through" partner. LTD might be able to continue the program into next year, without such a partner, if the program can again be classified as research and development, she said. "From our perspective, we're going to do what we can to help the program continue in some form," she said. "We want this to work." Enright said the LTD program is unique in Oregon because it provides free bus passes to middle and high school students, as opposed to college students or workplace employees. Students in grades 6-12 need only show the pink stickers affixed af·fix tr.v. af·fixed, af·fix·ing, af·fix·es 1. To secure to something; attach: affix a label to a package. 2. to their school identification cards to board the bus. A pilot program in the spring of 2005 involved about 5,000 high school students. But in the fall of 2005, the program was expanded to take in all high school and middle school students in the Eugene-Springfield metro area This article is about the music production team. For the article about population centers, see metropolitan area. Metro Area are a Brooklyn-based dance music production team composed of Morgan Geist and Darshan Jesrani. , a total of about 22,000 students. In the subsequent 12 months, LTD saw total bus ridership increase by roughly 11 percent. Last fall, the program was expanded to include another 5,000 eligible students in Cottage Grove Cottage Grove, village (1990 pop. 22,935), Washington co., SE Minn., near the St. Croix River; inc. 1965. There is farming (cattle, sheep, corn, and soybeans) and manufacturing (chemicals and machinery). , Junction City Junction City, city (1990 pop. 20,604), seat of Geary co., NE Kans., at the confluence of the Republican and Smoky Hill rivers; inc. 1859. The rail, trade, and processing center of an agricultural and dairy area, it grew as the supply point for nearby Fort Riley, and other outlying communities within LTD's service area. No one is quibbling about the program's success. LTD statistics indicate that 60 percent of student boardings on weekdays are between 7 a.m. and 9 a.m. or 3 p.m. and 6 p.m. - suggesting that most are riding to and from school. More than 80 percent of all students who took a sticker say they've ridden the bus at least once. About 13 percent have said they are new LTD riders, and nearly 60 percent have said they are riding the bus more often because of their free pass. The program has reduced student absenteeism and tardiness Tardiness Dagwood comic strip character; chronically late at the office. [Comics: “Blondie” in Horn, 118] ten o’clock scholar schoolboy who habitually arrives late. [Nurs. , allowed more students to take part in before- and after-school programs, and freed up families' money for other uses, said Lisa Van Winkle, LTD project leader for the bus pass program. Among those distressed by the program's possible demise is Eugene Mayor Kitty Piercy "Kitty" Piercy is the current mayor of Eugene, Oregon, sworn in January of 2005. The press dubbed Piercy's election part of a "shift to the left" for the Eugene City Council. , who sent an e-mail to the Eugene and Bethel school The Bethel School is a historic school in Monticello, Florida. It is located on County Road 149. On October 12, 2001, it was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. superintendents this week asking them to explore new grants or other solutions to keep the program alive. "I think this program is a great way to reduce vehicle impact on your school sites and, of course, to reduce vehicle usage in general," Piercy said in her e-mail. "(It) is a substantial contribution to a more sustainable Eugene." Van Winkle said the transit district hopes that familiarity with the bus, and rising gas prices, will persuade some students to keep riding even if the free program goes away. `We're hoping students who've given it a try will think, `Gosh, this works for some of my trips. I really don't want to pay for it, but compared to the cost of driving, it's still worth it.' ' Some students say that's not possible for them. Caytlin Fricker, waiting for a bus at the downtown Eugene Station, got wide-eyed when told that the free program may end soon. "It would affect me a lot financially," she said, running to catch her bus. "If I had to pay for it every day, I wouldn't be able to afford it." Nikki Dasso, a sophomore at Sheldon High, said she might ride her bicycle to school next year rather than pay to ride the bus. "I don't think it would be worth it when there are other options," she said. "I'd want to spend my money in other ways." But Derik Chin, another bus-riding Sheldon sophomore, said it's not a big deal to him if the free bus program is gone this fall. "I'll probably be driving by that time," he said. LTD ANNUAL BOARDINGS 2000-01: 8.6 million 2001-02: 8.6 million 2002-03: 8.2 million 2003-04: 8.2 million 2004-05: 8.35 million 2005-06: 9.3 million 2006-07: 9.7 million (projected) Note: LTD introduced service cuts and increased fares in 2002-03. Free bus ridership for high school and middle school students began in 2005. STUDENT OPTIONS Lane Transit District offers new bus pass programs Summer Youth Pass: $19.95 to ride all buses July through September Monthly Youth Pass: Beginning in September, youth may purchase a single-month pass for $19 or a three-month pass for $51.50 Other options: Buy tokens or pay cash to ride LTD. The district's EmX line is free to all riders. |
|
||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion