Seventh- and eighth-graders will take public transportation to and from Cincinnati Public Schools starting this fall.
Six school board members voted in favor of the change at a business meeting Monday night. Mary Wineberg, the only member who did not vote in favor of the change, was not present at the meeting.
The City Council has been working for seven months to close a multimillion-dollar budget deficit. Former Superintendent Iranetta Wright proposed cutting the yellow bus routes early in the budget process, but the City Council repeatedly rejected the proposal due to its unpopularity with community members and safety concerns.
On Monday, less than a month after the start of the school year, the board voted to change the district’s transportation plan, eliminating the remaining $6.2 million budget deficit.
Seventh- and eighth-graders used to ride Metro buses when Metro had specialized school routes that separated children from the general population. When the Southwest Ohio Regional Transit Authority eliminated those special routes in 2021, the district opted to put seventh- and eighth-graders on yellow buses. Parents of those students could still opt for Metro.
More: No more student buses on the subway: SORTA and CPS leaders issue joint statement
From now on, all seventh and eighth grade students will use the subway on existing regular public lines.
Here’s what you need to know.
How many students does this change impact?
Last year, 1,814 seventh and eighth graders rode the yellow buses.
How many yellow bus lines are being cancelled?
About 106.
How much money does the district save with this change?
Transferring seventh and eighth graders to Metro saves the district $9.1 million.
How many people took the metro last year?
1,119 students opted for the Metro service last school year.
Are there any exceptions?
Yes.
Students requiring special accommodations will be provided with a yellow bus service.
Additionally, third- through twelfth-grade students at the Spencer Center for Gifted and Exceptional Students will remain on the yellow buses.
Seventh and eighth grade students from K-8 elementary schools will also use the yellow buses. This includes the Academy of Multilingual Immersion Studies, Hartwell, the Academy of World Languages, Roberts and Roselawn.
What about Oyler and Riverview students?
Seventh and eighth grade students from Oyler and Riverview will use the subway.
Will families have the opportunity to practice their child’s route with their child before school starts?
Yes, these dates are not yet available.
Will children have more than one bus transfer in this new system?
According to the school district, no student will transfer more than once. Most students will not have any transfers.
What about security?
Safety was a priority for school board President Eve Bolton Monday. She also expressed concern that public school students have fewer transportation options than parochial and charter school students because Ohio law requires those students to be transported on yellow buses.
Problems were noted in February, when several attacks involving teenagers were reported downtown as children were leaving schools to catch buses. But Metro told the Enquirer at the time that most students did not need to take the bus. Metro said only 200 children took the bus at Government Square in the afternoon.
More: “I don’t know where I am.” A student’s subway ride on the first day of school
The Enquirer asked Cincinnati Public Schools what safety measures the district might implement on Metro buses during the school year. That information will be released at a later date, the district said.
The Enquirer will follow this story and provide more details on Cincinnati Public Schools’ transportation plan in the coming weeks.
This article was originally published on Cincinnati Enquirer: Cincinnati Public Schools to eliminate some yellow bus routes by 2024
