Some Houston ISD students will have a new option this school year for traveling to and from their campuses.
HISD and the Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County (METRO) have finalized an agreement that will give eligible high school students a METRO card at the district’s expense to use as an alternative to HISD’s own bus service.
According to HISD, students who are eligible for the district’s bus transportation can apply for the METRO card program via an online form. HISD students are considered eligible for bus transportation if they live at least 2 miles away from the school they attend, whether it’s a magnet school or the neighborhood campus to which they are zoned.
Kari Feinberg, HISD’s chief of organizational effectiveness, said the district began exploring partnership opportunities with METRO earlier this year.
“We know that in HISD, a lot of students are already utilizing the METRO bus and light rail service to get to school,” Feinberg said. “That made us think whether there was an opportunity through a formal partnership to better support those students, but also to support some of the students who are traditionally using our yellow bus service to get to school in a different way that may better meet their needs.”
Feinberg said money had been set aside in the district’s transportation budget to cover the cost of the partnership. She also said there is no cap to the number of students who could take advantage of the program and that METRO was providing the district with a discounted fare cost.
HISD representatives declined to say how much the district has budgeted for the program. Houston Public Media submitted an open records request Thursday in order to obtain that information. The district did not immediately provide the requested documentation.
“I don’t anticipate that if we were to exceed the number of students that we projected to enroll in the program, that we would limit eligibility for students,” she said. “We’re paying for them regardless of whether they choose to ride our school bus or whether they choose to use METRO transit.”
Participating students will be provided with a set number of “swipes” in excess of what is needed to travel to and from school during the week. Feinberg said this means that students in the program will be able to use METRO transportation outside of school and on the weekend.
“Reliable transportation is a gateway to opportunity,” METRO board chair Elizabeth Gonzalez Brock said in a statement. “This partnership opens doors for education, employment, and engagement, and we’re proud to support the success of Houston’s students.”
In terms of safety, Feinberg said all the buses, both those operated by the district and by METRO, are equipped with security cameras.
“METRO is also currently in the process of bringing back METRO police as riders on the buses,” she said. “We also want to just really encourage our students who are utilizing that service and their families to follow best practices around taking public transport.”
As of Wednesday, Feinberg said approximately 700 students had signed up for the program, with more expected to participate once classes start next week.
This year, the district expects to serve around 20,000 students through its own bus system, and Feinberg said the partnership with METRO should alleviate some pressure on the district’s buses.
HISD eliminated 85 bus routes as a cost-saving measure ahead of last school year, when about 700 students did not receive their bus route information before the first day of school.
Great Job & the Team @ Houston Public Media Source link for sharing this story.
