In August 2023, the Irvine City Council stepped up and provided $55,000 to establish a pilot bussing program to University High School for students living more than 5 miles away (Los Olivos, Laguna Altura, Hidden Canyon and Quail Hill). This funding made possible a safer, more sustainable route to school for our children, and made the cost of the bus more affordable to a greater number of families ($450 per year per rider, instead of the original $1,500).

Within days, grateful families filled all 50 spots on the bus. The district swiftly shut down the growing waitlist, so exact demand for additional buses is unknown. However, three buses serve the same communities for the middle school students, so it's reasonable to believe that there's enough demand for two or three buses.

A sustainable solution to ensure safe school transportation for Irvine residents is essential for traffic mitigation, increased safety, and reduced greenhouse gas emissions. We strongly urge the Irvine City Council to review and approve a request coming before it to:

• Allocate $110,000 to expand the University High School bus pilot for the 2024-2025 school year to two busses.
• Make a budget adjustment to subsidize the University High School bus on a continued basis.
• Work with families to consider improvements to the pilot program, such as “looping” the bus after school (currently done at the middle school); modifying the bus route start time; designating funding to ensure low-income students can participate; selling bus passes by semester and selling bus passes for morning-only or afternoon-only passengers to accommodate varying family needs and students who participate in afterschool activities for only part of the school year.

While the urgent need for safe and sustainable school transportation drove parents in the Los Olivos, Laguna Altura, Hidden Canyon and Quail Hill communities to reach out to the Irvine City Council for help last year, the issues of safety and sustainability extend across the city. We encourage the Irvine City Council to consider the Uni bus pilot program a first step, and to commit to broader assessment of at the safety and sustainability of school routes used by thousands of students across the city by:

• Requesting a review of collision data for Irvine intersections used for pedestrian and bike access to schools, to identify and prioritize spots where increased safety measures are needed.
• Identifying and review successful models of municipal/school district transportation partnership
• Engaging with families throughout Irvine to better understand their school transportation needs.