School committee to maintain current bus policy for 2025–26 while redistricting proceeds

The Woburn School Committee on June 10 agreed to keep the current student transportation policy in place for the coming 2025–26 school year while it completes redistricting work and collects data on bus routing needs.

Superintendent Dr. Crowley told the committee that the district’s policy currently offers regular education busing to “all students K to 12 who live more than a mile and a half” from their assigned school, and makes exceptions “in the opinion of a superintendent” when a hazard is involved and for pupils with medical documentation. He said the district recently signed a new contract with North Suburban Transportation and recommended maintaining policy continuity while redistricting is phased in so families are given advance notice of any changes.

Committee members asked for clearer operational guidance and for the transportation coordinator and traffic-safety personnel to define how “hazard” determinations will be made. Policy subcommittee chair Miss Cormier said the transportation coordinator had confirmed that traffic-safety officer Stokes is the city official who evaluates hazards; Cormier said that officer Stokes or another designated traffic official could report on the process at a future meeting. Member Miss Wetzel urged that families already receiving bussing not be surprised in September by sudden service changes.

The committee reached several next steps by consensus: - The policy’s substance (1.5-mile eligibility; superintendent discretion for hazards; medical exceptions) will remain in effect for the 2025–26 year while redistricting proceeds. - Staff will collect route and ridership data after the first round of redistricting and will work with the transportation contractor, the transportation coordinator, and the city traffic-safety officer (Officer Stokes) to define a protocol for hazard determinations and for stop reassessment. - The transportation coordinator aims to have final bus routes and route notifications to families in August; the committee noted routes will be published to families before school starts. - The policy subcommittee will propose language clarifications (non-substantive wording changes) for review on June 20 so the administration has guidance when building routes.

Members raised operational tradeoffs: more stops can lengthen trip times and require earlier pick-up times, and changing the mile threshold or adding stops could affect route timing even if the number of buses stays the same. Dr. Crowley asked stakeholders — the transportation contractor, transportation coordinator, and the traffic-safety officer — to meet with the committee or subcommittee to define hazard criteria and implementation protocols. The committee also reminded the public that the district uses a bus-tracking app to let families monitor bus locations in real time.

No formal change to the transportation policy was adopted at the June 10 meeting; the committee instead directed staff to gather data, consult with city safety officials, and return recommendations before changes are implemented.