Niskayuna School District is NOT making the safe school bus pick-up of children a priority. When children start middle school (6th grade, and their average age is 11 years old), they are no longer picked up at their homes. Our child is supposed to stand at the end of our road which intersects with a very busy, highly traveled, steep hill. There are also many drivers who frequently exceed the speed limit.

Additionally, large numbers of vehicles use it as a cut-through every day, to reach Maxon Road. During the winter months, there are high snowbanks which significantly reduce visibility to the side streets, and sometimes even obscure it completely. The hill also gets very slippery and icy.

Just one speeding driver hitting a patch of ice and losing control of their vehicle could severely injure or kill a young child who is forced to wait at any of these dangerous, side-road bus stops. Many parents do not have the flexibility to drive their children to school every day, due to the nature of their jobs or lack of other relatives or a support system to assist them with transportation.

A previous decision by the Superintendent to have the high school start later in the morning has resulted in chaos. Extra bus runs to pick up the high school kids were created and now, due to all of the stops required, the transportation department is being forced to eliminate or consolidate bus stop locations. Children are being placed at risk and have to stand in dangerous areas to cut down on the number of stops. Hire more drivers, or add more routes. Make the safety of our children a priority!