The Vernon School District is being urged to reconsider cuts to Cherryville bus routes.
School district officials will meet with concerned parents and members of the Regional District of North Okanagan’s Cherryville advisory planning committee Monday.
Hank Cameron, regional district, says it’s important for the school district to hear directly from residents about reduced busing, especially along Sugar Lake Road.
“It speaks to the viability of the school if people pull their children out of the school, move away or don’t move here (because of a lack of busing),” he said.
Some parents have expressed concern that without buses, children will have to walk long distances along Sugar Lake Road, which has narrow shoulders. The road is frequently used by logging trucks.
The school district has previously stated that route changes are being made to save money, but Cameron says there may be other options that allow transportation to continue.
“We’d like to look at the logistics of busing,” he said.
“They used to have bus drivers located in Cherryville and that should be looked at to reduce the kilometres so the bus isn’t driven out from Vernon and then back to Vernon.”
The Regional District of North Okanagan board recently demanded that the Ministry of Education increase funding for rural schools.
