More students apt to opt for bus
Children board school buses at Libby Booth Elementary School last week, a sight that could become more common as parents’ fuel bills rise and they send students to school on the buses.
A “walking pool” might be the system that takes many students to school this summer.
And, if gas prices continue to increase, Washoe County School District anticipates more parents sending their students to school on a bus this fall.
“Most of us are parents, so we can sense that through what is being discussed,” said Todd Duncan, fleet operations manager for the district. “I would definitely see that as a possibility.”
Though it may be attributed to the warm weather, Kristell Moller, principal of Double Diamond Elementary School, said she has noticed more students walking to school.
Moller recommends walking for students who live within a mile of the multitrack school. For safety, they can walk in groups, a system similar to car pooling that she calls a “walking pool.”
Lisa Kitzmiller, 34, of Reno, said she sympathizes with parents who have children attending year-round schools.
“I think that if you have children at a year-round school, you probably would be hit a little more because it is over the summer,” said Kitzmiller, who has two children attending Rollan Melton Elementary School and spends $80 a week on her SUV Ford Expedition. “I know, I’m not going to be driving around in the summer. We’re going to be having a lot more play-dates at our house.”
This article appeared originally in Reno Gazette-Journal.
