safe crossings and sidewalks to get to the bus stop or from home to the bus stop, from the bus stop to school or the entire journey.” That includes education about safe walking behaviors, she added. Kori Johnson, the Safe Routes Partnership senior
program and engagement manager, pointed out com- munity infrastructure can enable safe and easy passage for students. But that’s not always the case. “Thinking about how we’re also partnering with school buses, transit agencies and other partners who are invested in getting kids to and from school safely is another big part of the work that we do,” Johnson said. Johnson used Howard County, Maryland where she
grew up, as an example. “The county is invested in a lot of walking and biking in-
frastructure because there are some schools where there’s a neighborhood right across from the school and there was no sidewalk or safe path for kids to get to school. Kids will literally get picked up on the bus to drive right across the street to go to school,” she said. “They’ve been constructing a lot of sidewalks so students can walk to school and have a safe passage.” Another example: Charlottesville, Virginia. “Their school district is invested in a walking school bus
program, which is a program where there’s a bus route, and instead of a bus coming, students actually meet and walk along the route together. It’s a walking school bus,” Johnson said. “They pick up students along the route. “The district is invested in more walking school bus
programs, getting adults to walk with kids to school and determine the different bus stops along the way. It’s en- couraging more kids to walk safely,” Johnson continued. She noted there are many students and families now
who are walking a lot longer distances than they were before because of changing bus routes. “A lot of families are concerned about what that looks
like and how they can stay safe,” said Johnson. “A lot of our Safe Routes to School programs are investing in education around pedestrian safety, bike safety.” Johnson added there are many students still taking the school bus and transit to class. “We’ve seen a lot of our Safe Routes to School pro- grams invest in transit training,” she said, citing Alameda County, California as anotjer example. “They’re teaching kids how to use the bus, how to get to the bus stop safely and are partnering with their local transit agency.” Johnson provided an example where a middle school
bus route was eliminated. Part of that school district’s capital improvement plan was to invest in a newer, up- graded pathway between the school and the local library so students who weren’t walking home are now walking to the library where their parents would meet them later. Other options could include recreational centers, Johnson said.
38 School Transportation News • APRIL 2026
Melisa Lunderville is the assistant superintendent of
student services for Santa Cruz Valley Unified School District No. 35 (SCV35) in Rio Rico, Arizona. She noted that due to its geographic location and rural service area, the district primarily operates an in-house transporta- tion model. It directly manage routes, safety protocols and service delivery to meet community needs. “While we are largely self-sustaining in our transporta-
tion operations, SCV35 does collaborate with neighboring districts and specialized programs when routes extend beyond our immediate boundaries,” said Lunderville. “We coordinate transportation services with other
districts to accommodate students attending programs outside of our district, such as Arizona State Schools for the Deaf and the Blind routes located in other cities,” she continued. “This collaboration ensures continuity of services while maximizing efficiency and minimizing duplication of routes.” While the district’s rural setting south of Tucson,
Arizona does not require extensive coordination with municipal transit agencies or regional transportation co- operatives, “[W]e maintain open lines of communication with local municipalities and community partners to ensure student safety, particularly regarding traffic flow, road conditions and infrastructure improvements that impact bus routes,” Lunderville said. SCV35 also aligns its transportation planning with Safe
Routes to School principles by maintaining clear school bus stop procedures, conducting regular driver safety training and reviewing routes to ensure safe pick-up and drop-off locations. “To address driver shortages, SCV35 maximizes route
efficiency by regularly reviewing and adjusting routes to eliminate redundancies, consolidating stops when ap- propriate and ensuring optimal bus capacity utilization,” said Lunderville. Cross-training staff and maintaining a substitute
driver pool further enhances operational flexibility and reduces service disruptions, Lunderville added. “SCV35 evaluates transportation needs annually to
align services with student enrollment, program place- ments and special education requirements,” Lunderville said. “When appropriate, the district collaborates with neighboring districts for specialized routes outside our service area, ensuring cost-sharing where feasible rather than duplicating services. “The district continuously monitors expenditures,
pursues available state transportation funding, and eval- uates replacement cycles to make data-driven decisions about capital investments,” she concluded. ●
Read about how universal student ID cards are supporting transportation services as well as student and family needs. Visit
stnonline.com/go/pc.
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