Cincinnati Public Schools board of education members say changes have been made to keep students as safe as possible when the school year kicks off Thursday.Concerns from board members, teachers and parents have been heard loud and clear over the last few weeks following a decision by the SORTA board to eliminate XTRA bus routes thousands of CPS students rely on each year to get to and from school. Instead, CPS middle and high school students will commute alongside adults on the regular Metro routes. "I think it's a real possibility that this can go pretty well," said school board member Melanie Bates. "We're had discussions with the city, further discussion with SORTA. And people are on the same page about safety for our students."Last week, representatives from CPS met with SORTA in a private meeting that produced little progress other than an agreement that individuals from both groups needed to work together to make changes ahead of the first day of school.Ryan Messer, vice president of the school board, was part of that meeting and the conversations since."They came together to look site by site. What could we do to make these as safe as possible?" he said. "Life is one percent what happens, 99 percent how you respond."CPS and Metro are responding with a list of changes to keep students safe. The school board expects more changes will be needed once the school year s tarts. Metro is adding and changing bus stops at several high schools and adding a few additional routes. Bates said those changes were important to her. "My worry was the children say from Walnut Hills having to go to Montgomery Road and crossing en masse," Bates said. Metro also agreed to have shadow buses on standby in case there are routes that do not have enough capacity. CPS is adding more adult supervision at arrival and dismissal times which will come from school staff, central office staff and school security. School resource officers will also help with pedestrian safety efforts."From what I'm hearing it's all hands on deck," Bates said. "Our security guards have been trained as crossing guards. They're now licensed crossing guards."Staff from Metro will be at each high school orientation to help students learn about public transportation and the Metro system. An unidentified number of Metro staffers will also be present at various transfer points to help guide students at the start of the year.Students will ride for free for the first few days of school. They will receive bus passes at their respective schools.
Cincinnati Public Schools board of education members say changes have been made to keep students as safe as possible when the school year kicks off Thursday.
Concerns from board members, teachers and parents have been heard loud and clear over the last few weeks following a decision by the SORTA board to eliminate XTRA bus routes thousands of CPS students rely on each year to get to and from school. Instead, CPS middle and high school students will commute alongside adults on the regular Metro routes.
"I think it's a real possibility that this can go pretty well," said school board member Melanie Bates. "We're had discussions with the city, further discussion with SORTA. And people are on the same page about safety for our students."
Last week, representatives from CPS met with SORTA in a private meeting that produced little progress other than an agreement that individuals from both groups needed to work together to make changes ahead of the first day of school.
Ryan Messer, vice president of the school board, was part of that meeting and the conversations since.
"They came together to look site by site. What could we do to make these as safe as possible?" he said. "Life is one percent what happens, 99 percent how you respond."
CPS and Metro are responding with a list of changes to keep students safe. The school board expects more changes will be needed once the school year s tarts.
Metro is adding and changing bus stops at several high schools and adding a few additional routes. Bates said those changes were important to her.
"My worry was the children say from Walnut Hills having to go to Montgomery Road and crossing en masse," Bates said.
Metro also agreed to have shadow buses on standby in case there are routes that do not have enough capacity.
CPS is adding more adult supervision at arrival and dismissal times which will come from school staff, central office staff and school security. School resource officers will also help with pedestrian safety efforts.
"From what I'm hearing it's all hands on deck," Bates said. "Our security guards have been trained as crossing guards. They're now licensed crossing guards."
Staff from Metro will be at each high school orientation to help students learn about public transportation and the Metro system. An unidentified number of Metro staffers will also be present at various transfer points to help guide students at the start of the year.
Students will ride for free for the first few days of school. They will receive bus passes at their respective schools.
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