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Ridgewood board authorizes subscription busing at $1,550 per student as courtesy routes end
Summary
Facing soaring contracted transportation costs, the Ridgewood board authorized a subscription (paid) busing program priced at $1,550 per student to replace non‑hazardous courtesy routes. Parents raised safety, affordability and equity concerns; the district said it will explore longer‑term options such as owning buses to reduce costs.
The Ridgewood Board of Education authorized a subscription‑based transportation option after administrators said the district cannot continue to operate many non‑hazardous courtesy routes without large, ongoing subsidies.
Superintendent Dr. Schwartz told the board the district calculated the cost of offering seats on existing contracted routes and, after accounting for route expenses and required seats for hazardous routes, recommended a subscription price of $1,550 per student per year. He acknowledged the figure is high and described it as "an eye‑watering amount of money," but said it reflects current contracted route rates and driver costs.
Resident Anne Bonner said eliminating courtesy busing would impose a large daily burden on families who must walk with small children and asked whether additional crossing guards would be provided on routes that will no longer receive free bus service. The board said hazardous‑route busing will continue and that families who recently lost service would be given priority for subscription seats; administrators also discussed setting aside limited funds or seats for needs‑based cases but did not adopt a district subsidy program at the meeting.
Board members suggested longer‑term strategies to lower transport costs, including buying and operating district buses and hiring district drivers, but said such steps require planning, storage and staffing that cannot be achieved overnight.
Next steps: the district will open a subscription sign‑up period, notify affected families of routes and eligibility, and return to the board with additional options for lowering long‑term transportation costs.
