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Resident urges state to factor hazardous routes into school transportation funding
Summary
A public commenter at the Matawan-Aberdeen Regional School District meeting said New Jersey's school funding formula ignores hazardous routes such as State Route 35 and urged lawmakers to change the calculation that determines district transportation aid.
At a Matawan-Aberdeen Regional School District board meeting, a resident commenter urged state lawmakers to revise New Jersey's school funding formula to account for hazardous traffic routes that affect the district's transportation costs.
The commenter said the current state funding calculation does not consider dangerous local roadways when determining transportation aid. "Currently, the state does not in that formula, does not consider the hazardous routes in your town when they determine how much funding you're getting to be given the transportation funding," the commenter said.
The remark tied safety concerns to funding. The commenter noted the omission "didn't really play out as extra money this year" but said the issue is "a long time coming conversation," and called on state leaders, including Sen. Gopal, who chairs the Senate Education Committee, to consider local hazardous routes when setting school transportation funding.
The commenter specifically mentioned State Route 35 and what was transcribed as "State Route 30 4, etcetera" as examples of roadways that affect travel and safety for students. The speaker said transportation was their primary focus in engaging with state officials about the funding formula.
No formal board action on the funding formula was recorded in the meeting transcript.
