PASCO COUNTY, Fla. — Pasco County Schools will eliminate courtesy routes for the upcoming school year. This will leave around 3,000 students having to find a new way to school.
Tuesday morning school board members addressed safety concerns with more kids likely walking to school this upcoming school year.
“Our families are really worried about their children’s safety and I am too," school board member, Megan Hardin, said.
Cutting courtesy routes means around 3,000 middle and high school students who live within 2 miles of their school will have to find another way.
Harding believes busy intersections near schools should have crossing guards.
"If we can get traffic studies done, If we can work with the county out on major intersections to look to see if we can get some crossing guards," Harding said. "I understand they are having a shortage of crossing guards."
District officials said crossing guards are staffed by the Pasco County Sheriff's Office.
10 Tampa Bay reached out to sheriff's office officials to see if it is feasible to get crossing guards at busy intersections. A spokesperson at the sheriff's office said there's no money in the budget to do that. The spokesperson said they are happy to supply guards as long as the board funds it.
"Facing this reality, and realizing that school crossing guards are entirely funded out of the Sheriff’s Office budget, a request such as this would be best served by the School Board funding these positions and working with the Pasco Sheriff’s Office to fill those positions, if desired," a sheriff's spokesperson, Amanda Hunter said in a statement.
10 Tampa Bay also reached out to county officials to see what sidewalk projects they are working on. Right now, there are sidewalk projects near Pasco Middle School, Charles Rusche Middle School and some area elementary schools.
One dad spoke during the school board meeting and explained his kids will now have to walk to school because he works.
"We’re concerned," He said. "Are there going to be more boots on the ground for safety of the children?"
Another concern he expressed was how students will get to school when the weather isn't safe.
District leaders acknowledged these concerns, but said this is their way of dealing with the bus driver shortage.
One bus driver who has worked for Pasco County Schools for five years said the shortage is going to get worse if drivers' salaries don't increase.
"I could quit tomorrow and go to Hillsborough and make $15.56, first day," they said. "That’s what you need to consider. I went by Burger King yesterday, they’re hiring at $16 an hour.”
School board members said they need to cut the courtesy routes because of money. The goal with cutting these routes will be to get kids to school on time because district leaders said many routes are continuously running late.
For now, courtesy route eliminations will begin at the start of the 2022-23 school year.