Villages of Woodland Springs Homeowners Association

Keller schools considering shuttle-bus system

Jul 18, 2006

By JESSAMY BROWN
STAR-TELEGRAM STAFF WRITER

Keller school officials are looking at a shuttle-bus system to help ease the traffic jams expected at two new schools when classes begin Aug. 9.

The shuttle buses would transport students in neighborhoods near Trinity Springs Middle and Trinity Meadows Intermediate schools on Keller Hicks Road in far north Fort Worth. Keller officials say that the busy Keller Hicks is too dangerous for students to walk.

?“We feel it is important for us to do something until the situation improves along the road,?” said Bill Stone, assistant superintendent for business operations.

Keller Hicks is scheduled to be widened to five lanes from two by the beginning of the next school year. Construction has been delayed while Fort Worth officials and utility companies work out who should foot the bill to move electric and telecommunications lines.

To help with safety, Fort Worth will build a sidewalk along Alta Vista and Keller Hicks roads by the end of the fall semester. A temporary traffic signal will be installed at the Keller Hicks-Alta Vista intersection by the end of the fall semester, said Tom Leuschen, Fort Worth?’s transportation manager for capital projects.

Keller officials say other, quicker steps are needed.

Parents and residents say more families traveling to the new schools will add to the road?’s congestion.

Dean Rogers, whose daughter Kimberlynn will attend Trinity Springs and son Matthew will attend Trinity Meadows, said he told district officials that he is concerned about their safety. He suggested crossing guards and sidewalks.

?“I have put them on notice that it is their responsibility for my kids,?” Rogers said. ?“I cannot ask my children, nor would I allow them to walk on Keller Hicks. That is a busy, busy road.?”

The school district does not normally provide transportation to children who live within two miles of school, but Keller officials are considering temporary shuttle buses for such students, Stone said.

The school board can designate a route within two miles of a school as hazardous ?— a provision that allows for state funding. Administrators plan to present a proposal to the board Monday, district spokesman Jason Meyer said.

Stone said the district is considering four routes with pickups in area neighborhoods. A preliminary report in May estimated the cost at nearly $780 per day. It was not known how much the state would cover.

Some Keller school trustees have asked the administrators to offer several options, including having families pay to have their children ride the buses.

?“I don?’t think that it?’s the district?’s responsibility to play a larger role than to educate the children,?” Trustee Jarrett Armstrong said. ?“I?’d like to see what the administration comes to us with.?”