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From the Desk of Mayor Barry Groveman
September 2005
July/August 2005
June 2005 |
School Bus Incentive Program
Last
month, I wrote about traffic issues facing Calabasas and some of the
solutions in place that are improving the flow of vehicles on our streets.
This month I want to focus on an upcoming City effort to promote the safe,
reliable and efficient transportation of students to and from school each
day. School busing is not only statistically the safest way for students to
get to school but it is also a sacrosanct responsibility that we take very
seriously in Calabasas. In addition, the benefits in reducing serious air
pollutants are vital, particularly when you realize that idling cars near
schools are impacting the most sensitive population—our kids. The City’s
School Bus Program, run in conjunction with the Las Virgenes School District
and Durham School Services, safely transports hundreds of our students to
and from school each day and, by reducing scores of idling cars, it provides
a safer environment. While the program has been widely viewed as a notable
success, we know it can improve and we should be more aggressive and
vigilant than ever.
The
City’s Comprehensive Vehicle Management Program (CVMP), which meets twice a
month to address school related traffic problems, will launch a two-school
pilot study for an ambitious School Bus Incentive Program this fall
involving students from Lupin Hill Elementary School and Calabasas High
School. The purpose of the Bus Incentive Program is to maximize student
participation in the school bus program which is currently subsidized by the
City of Calabasas. Lupin Hill presently has fifty bus riders and Calabasas
High School has 211 riders. Ideally, the CVMP hopes to increase Lupin Hill
ridership to 150 students and Calabasas High School ridership to 500
students. These target numbers of the pilot incentive program would
increase combined ridership at the two schools by 150% and is no small
feat. The City plans to expand the program to all school in Calabasas. I
believe we should think big and act boldly to force progress.
Using
incentives to excite students about riding the bus is a key component of the
program. For Lupin Hill students, ideas range from offering discounts on
attending City of Calabasas camps, funding for a new computer lab based on a
formula per rider and treats, prizes, and official recognition for riding
the bus. Older students at Calabasas High School who ride the bus most often
may be offered an opportunity to win a
coveted parking spot for their Junior or Senior year. The afternoon bus
schedule could be expanded to allow students with after-school commitments
to participate. We will work very closely with parents and faculty to help
them achieve their goals by partnering with them on projects they care
about, in return for their help on increasing bus ridership. I believe this
is can be a win for everybody.
Final
details on the program will be released shortly and my hope is that by this
fall, more students will be motivated to ride to school on the bus to be
with their friends and receive incentives for doing so while helping to
reduce commuter traffic on our roads and reducing the direct impact of air
pollutants on our kids and residents.
We recognize this is a long term project and plan to see it through. |
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