AUSTIN, Texas — With less than two weeks until the first day of school, thousands of Austin ISD students will get to class a little differently this year.
To cut costs, the district is rolling out new transportation hubs for many middle and high school students, while elementary students will continue using neighborhood bus stops.
Austin ISD says the number of hubs has grown from 242 to 254, with most of the additions made after parents raised safety and walkability concerns.
For many of the district’s 20,000 bus riders, the change means students will meet at centralized locations before heading to campus. District officials say the new system will make routes more efficient and help address rising transportation costs and budget challenges.
Austin ISD Transportation Executive Director Kris Hafezizadeh said the maximum distance a student would travel to a hub is three miles.
“The maximum would be three miles to the nearest hub,” Hafezizadeh said. “But many, the majority, are much less than that.”
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The district says the transportation changes are driven by budget constraints.
“My transportation budget was about $33 million. This year it is $27.5 million,” Hafezizadeh said.
Families are encouraged to use the district’s Bus Stop Finder before the first day of school to confirm pickup locations and arrival times.
District officials maintain the new hub locations are safe.
“The hubs are safe. There is no question. All the locations at the elementary schools are safe,” Hafezizadeh said.
In addition to elementary schools, transportation hubs will be located at community pools, public libraries, Capital Metro bus stops near schools and transit centers.
Austin ISD says all 254 transportation hubs were selected with safety and traffic flow in mind. While district leaders say they are willing to adjust hub locations as needed, they do not plan to return to neighborhood bus stops for middle and high school students.
“If we go back to the philosophy of creating neighborhood stops everywhere, then the idea to help our overall budget deficit will be defeated,” Hafezizadeh said.
Austin ISD says the average distance from a student’s home to an elementary school, public library or community pool is between two and two-and-a-half miles.
District officials say signs will be put up at transportation hubs before school starts to identify where students should wait for buses.