The issue of climate change is of major concern to Newton residents. There’s general agreement that one important step is reducing car usage, which also improves air quality. So why is our city discouraging people from using school buses, which leads to increased car trips and idling cars wasting gas and spewing exhaust in front of our schools?

This year we are welcoming a new group of School Committee members. One issue we see raised over and over again (including in the current discussion on another post) is school bus fees. Currently, parents need to pay $350 for their kids to take school bus, which often require long walks to get to the nearest stop and can have timing problems for after school activities such as sports. High school students pay the same to park as to take the bus, with no financial incentives to car pool.

The School Committee needs to take a serious look at getting rid of, or at least seriously reducing, school bus fees and finding ways to make bus stop locations work better for families. It should also cost more for students to park than to take the bus, and would be worth considering lower parking fees for students who commit to carpooling (for example, with others from their neighborhoods who participate in the same after-school activities).

What do people think?