SIMI VALLEY : City Funds School Buses for Disabled
The Simi Valley City Council has granted a request by the school district to use $235,000 in redevelopment money to purchase three new buses to accommodate disabled children.
Peggy Rose, who chairs a committee of parents, told the council Monday that some disabled children spend up to three hours a day on a bus because of a shortage of vehicles designed for them.
“This is simply unconscionable,” she said. Councilwoman Judy Mikels agreed, saying she was invited by district officials on Friday to observe the problems with transporting the children to and from school.
“This is no exaggeration from the school district,” she said. “I saw it. This is definitely not good for these children’s health to be spending two or three hours on the bus every day.”
The Simi Valley Unified School District has five buses that can accommodate wheelchairs, oxygen tanks, walkers and other medical equipment. Four of the buses are used daily, with one reserved as a backup.
However, school officials said two of the buses are 15 years old, have been driven more than 150,000 miles and are mechanically unreliable.
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