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Parents press Great Valley for faster fix to multi-hour bus rides as district pilots foundation-funded activity bus
Summary
Multiple parents told the board that some students are spending up to two hours each way on buses after school; the superintendent described a one-year, foundation-funded pilot activity bus for high-demand elementary/5–6 attendance days and said routing and uptake will determine future plans.
Multiple parents urged the Great Valley School District board on Monday to resolve long bus rides that, they said, are leaving children exhausted and missing activities.
"What is the purpose of assigning a child to spend 2 hours on a bus every single day?" asked Tammy Johnston of Tinkerhill Lane during public comment. She said her daughter sometimes spends more than an hour on the afternoon route, describing one day when the child left the 5–6 center at about 3:10 p.m. and did not arrive home until 4:17 p.m.
The superintendent reported earlier in the meeting that the district's foundation has raised funds for a one-year pilot after-school activity bus aimed at elementary-level students and the 5–6 center. The pilot would run one day a week at schools with high extracurricular participation; principals would choose the heaviest day and the foundation will cover the operating cost for the pilot year.
"We're going to evaluate. We do have the funds if it's needed to run 2," the superintendent said, describing how routing and sign-ups would determine whether more than one vehicle is used. He said the pilot is intended to test parent demand and logistics; the district does not plan to underwrite the service long term.
Parents at the podium said the pilot does not address immediate problems with regular morning and afternoon bus routing. Jolene Lowry, who said her daughter boards at 7:27 a.m. and arrives home at about 4:30 p.m., called the length of the school day "ridiculous" and asked why first pickups in the morning are not first drop-offs in the afternoon. Robert Johnston described interim solutions such as reserving bus staging spots and a corner drop-off plan; he called some proposals unsafe and asked the board to clarify operational constraints (for example, fleet size or funding) that prevent more immediate fixes.
Other residents said the problem predates the activity-bus plan and stems from recent route changes that moved certain 5–6 center students onto other runs, extending travel times. Paul DiSachio and Anil Sharma told the board they supported the families and urged a broader, data-driven review of transportation operations, citing children's sleep, safety and development.
Board members heard a description of the pilot but made no immediate policy or budget commitment during the meeting. The superintendent said the foundation plans to treat the activity bus as an annual fundraising initiative if data from the pilot show demand; the district emphasized that the pilot would be funded by the foundation and not by district general funds.
The board does not appear to have adopted any immediate operational changes to routing during the meeting; attendees expressed frustration that several weeks of complaints had not been resolved. Parents requested clearer communication about constraints and timelines for fixes.
The meeting's public comment period on voting items focused heavily on transportation; no formal motion or vote was recorded that would change routing or add district-funded buses at the session.
