MECKLENBURG COUNTY, N.C. — Controversy continues to break out over the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools express bus stop plan.
The express stops would consolidate bus stops into fewer centralized locations in the hopes of getting students to and from school faster and cutting costs.
However, now there’s a split between some CMS Board of Education members and top CMS staff on the future of the stops.
The express stops impact about 5,000 students in certain magnet programs.
CMS staff are urging board members to allow them to move forward with the plan, but not all board members are sold on the idea yet.
Several CMS Board of Education members say they’re worried about families with no cars, or lower incomes being impacted disproportionately.
“We've heard solutions, such as carpools and you know, things of that nature, but carpools won't matter if you don't have a car,” Dee Rankin, a CMS school board member, said.
Some families have even told board members they’re taking their children out of the magnet programs because of the bus stop changes.
“Why?” Martha Valencia, a parent against the express stops asked. “My children can't have the opportunity to go and continue going to school that they chose, that they already invested so much.”
If CMS wanted to scratch the plan altogether, the district would need to add more than $4 million to its budget for more bus drivers.
However, staff said there’s a possibility they wouldn’t even be able to get drivers even if that money becomes available.
“We are running the risk of not being able to get kids to school for teaching and learning, I wish that I could make it better,” Adam Johnson, CMS’s transportation director, said.
CMS is talking about its budget request and currently funding to prevent express stops from moving forward is not included.
Contact Shamarria Morrison at smorrison@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.