CRANBURY: Residents again ask board to move bus stops

By Natalia Knochowski, Staff Writer
   CRANBURY — Residents of Parkview Road and Hardley Drive once again asked the Board of Education to consider changing two new bus stops at the board’s meeting Tuesday night.
   The bus stops used to be on Parkview Road and Hardley Drive and were moved to Old Trenton Road weeks prior to the beginning of school.
   The bus routes initially were changed because the speed limit on Old Trenton Road was reduced from 50 mph to 35 mph and to keep bus drivers from going on cul-de-sacs on Parkview Road and Hardley Drive during pickup and drop-off of students, according to school officials.
   A bus driver’s visibility becomes an issue on cul-de-sacs, specifically when the buses have to turn around to exit, Transportation Coordinator Kaye Davison said.
   ”It’s always better for the kids to come to the bus stop and not have the bus go to the kids,” Ms. Davison said.
   Parents first asked the board to change the stops at the Sept. 7 board meeting, stating the new stops are more dangerous due to heavier and faster traffic on Old Trenton Road.
   However, bus routes are administrative decisions and are not voted on by the board. Rather, Business Administrator Joyce Picariello and Ms. Davison decided on the bus routes with guidance from the Police Department and individual bus drivers, Ms. Picariello said.
   The board could not vote on the issue at the Sept 7 meeting, but promised to have more information at its next meeting, which was Tuesday.
   Ms. Picariello showed a presentation Tuesday to explain why the bus stops were changed and what school policies governed those decisions.
   In addition, the presentation included some facts from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s document, “Selecting School Bus Stop Locations,” and a survey the board took that showed six other school districts avoid driving on cul-de-sacs.
   Still, residents were unsettled about the changes and gave the board a petition from themselves and other residents of Parkview Road and Hardley Drive that acknowledged they thought the new stops were less safe and should be moved back to their original locations.
   Hardley Drive resident Daniel Kinney said the board was “cherry-picking” facts from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
   ”I request a vote,” Mr. Kinney said.
   In addition, he specifically asked Chief School Administrator John Haney how he could support the bus stop change.
   Mr. Haney said he supported the change after talking with Ms. Davison and also because six other districts have bus routes that avoid cul-de-sacs.
   Robin Black, of Parkview Road, said the drivers on Parkview Road and Hardley Drive are mostly the residents that live on those streets. Therefore, they try to go slow because they know children are around. But, she added, they don’t know who drives on Old Trenton Road.
   ”They just want to get to work on time,” Ms. Black said about the drivers on Old Trenton Road.
   Another concern parents raised at the meeting was that the construction of Old Trenton Road is dangerous. Specifically, within the past week, there has been construction going on in front of one of the bus stops.
   ”I really challenge all of you to stand on Old Trenton Road,” Noel Kinney, of Hardley Drive, said to the board.
   According to Ms. Picariello, the construction is a county project. Drainpipes are being added, and there is some reconfiguring being done to the road.
   Mr. Haney addressed this, however, and said a police officer will be present at all times with students during pickup and drop-off until construction is finished.
   Board President Lynne Schwarz said the board will continue to look at the matter.
   ”We hear your comments, and we will definitely take it back to the Finance and Transportation Committee,” Ms. Schwarz said. “My sense is that, given the amount of input, that the Finance and Transportation Committee (will make) a recommendation for us to vote on the decision at the next board meeting.”
   The next meeting is scheduled for Oct. 5.