THOUSAND OAKS : Board Delays Action on Lower Bus Fees

Thousand Oaks school officials want more information on how a proposal to lower bus fees charged to parents would raise more money to cover the district’s transportation costs.

The board Thursday reviewed the plan intended to end busing’s financial drain on the district’s shrinking budget. Board members said they expect to vote on the issue at their May 13 meeting.

Administrators in the Conejo Valley Unified School District hope to boost bus ridership by lowering the annual cost of $450 per student. The program fell $140,000 short in its first year as hundreds of students stopped riding the bus, citing the high cost, officials said.

School board members want more specifics on how district officials plan to contain costs if more students pay the lower annual price of $360 for bus rides to and from school.

But the board showed general support for the idea of lowering the fees.

Since the fees were introduced, the number of riders has fallen from 2,000 to 774 this semester, officials said. The district would need more than 1,200 students to ride the bus at the lower rate to break even, officials said.