Fayette County Schools to Use Backup Bus Stops During Snow and Ice Under New Winter Plan
Lexington officials and Fayette County Public Schools plan to consolidate neighborhood bus stops onto priority-cleared roads during extreme winter weather, a response to long closures in recent years.
By Samir Nasser ·
Fayette County Public Schools will move some bus pickups to consolidated stops on roads the city prioritizes for clearing when extreme winter weather strikes, beginning this winter. The change follows public frustration over lengthy school closures during storms in each of the past two years.
The arrangement, referred to as plan B, would be activated only during snow and ice. It will not alter the regular bus routes the district already operates, according to officials. Lexington city leaders and district staff are expected to complete the plan later this month.
Mayor Linda Gorton presented the proposal Thursday at a news conference at city hall. "We want families to understand these are changes that would occur at stops within neighborhoods, not along major thoroughfares," she said.
Officials offered few specifics about where the consolidated stops would be located. They did say the sites would be given priority by city crews for clearing and would be readied to handle the volume of traffic created when parents bring children to those stops.
FCPS Chief Operating Officer Myron Thompson said the district has not had a backup bus route plan in place for at least three decades.
The plan comes after the mayor unveiled a revised approach to clearing all Lexington roadways. Several recent severe winter events, including one earlier this year, have crippled the city. During the ice storms, crews did not adequately clear streets and roads, and schools and businesses were closed for more than a week. Gorton announced the new snow plan last week in response to the criticism.
That plan includes hiring contractors to clear major roads such as Man O' War, while city crews concentrate on neighborhood streets. It also raises the budget for pretreatment and adjusts its timing, and streamlines the handling of rank 3 and 4 roads.
The city's snow response has become a central issue in the Tuesday, Nov. 3 election, in which Gorton is seeking a third and final term.
District officials are urging parents and guardians to read the final document when it is released in late October so they know the plan B bus routes. FCPS is the second-largest school district in Kentucky, with roughly 40,000 students.
Originally published by News Media House · Source: WEKU
