March 21, 2012 Shrewsbury Public School Transportation Fee
Considerations Slide 2 Overview Shrewsbury Public Schools
Transports over 4,500 students daily. Fleet 38 Regular Education
buses, 5 Special Education buses, and 2 Assabet Valley Regional
High School buses. Fifth and Final Year of contract with AA
Transportation Contract is tied to CPI FY13 Budget assumes a 3.5%
increase in the daily bus rate. 38 Regular Education buses cost
approximately $2.2 M Revenue to date is $603,890 or 27% of the cost
to transport students. The transportation fees generate additional
revenue, which reduces the amount of appropriated budget funds
utilized for transportation, which in turn allows more appropriated
dollars to be spent on the educational program. Slide 3
Transportation Fee Transportation Fee was implemented in FY08 at
$210/rider and $420 family cap. Fee was increased to its current
rate in FY10 to $250/rider and $500 family cap. Late fee of
$50/rider and $600 family cap. $250/rider fee equates to $1.38 per
day State Law Mandated transportation for K-6 students who live two
or more miles from school, students attending vocational technical
school outside the district, and students whose special education
needs require specialized transportation. Students who qualify for
Free/Reduce lunch do not pay a fee Families in need are offered
payment plans Slide 4 Ridership and Revenue 4,578 Riders, $603,890
to date for FY12 FY08FY09FY10FY 11FY12 To date Total bus
riders4,7794,623 -3% 4,519 -2% 4,622 +2% 4,578 -0.9% Total regular
fees collected $539,650$546,298 +1% $573,250 +5%* $584,324 +2%
$592,290 +1% Processing fee for free riders ($10) $4,860$6,250 +3%
$5,250 -2% $0 N/A $0 N/A Late fees$8,225$16,450 +100% $26,250
+60%** $15,500 -40% $11,600 -25% Students paying late fee: Late
fees collected $25 (FY08 & 09) or $50 (FY10, 11,12) 329658
+100% 525 -20%** 310 -40% 232 -25% Total fee collection
$552,735$568,998 +3% $604,750 +6% $610,215 +1% $603,890 -1.0%
Paying riders: regular fees collected $210 fee (FY08 & 09) or
$250 fee (FY10,11,12) 2,5702,601 +1% 2,293 -12%* 2,337 +2% 2,369 +1
% *Regular fee revenue increased by 5% despite 12% decrease in paid
ridership due to fee increase from $210 to $250 **Late fee
increased from $25 to $50 in FY10; late fee revenue increased by
60% but actual students paying late decreased by 20% Slide 5
Transportation Fee Considerations Considerations for the
Transportation Fee include: Increasing the Fee Eliminating the
Family Cap Currently 119 students who would be required to pay but
are exempt due to the family cap Projections assume same level of
ridership, however higher fees my result in lower ridership as
happened in FY10 Slide 6 Transportation Fee Projections
FeeProjected RevenueAdditional Projected Revenue if No Family Cap
(119 students) Total Projected Revenue if No Family Cap Current
Fee$250$600,000$29,750$629,750 Increase
$5$255$612,000$30,345$642,345 Increase
$10$260$624,000$30,940$654,940 Increase
$15$265$636,000$31,535$667,535 Increase
$20$270$648,000$32,130$680,130 Increase
$25$275$660,000$32,725$692,725 Increase
$30$280$672,000$33,320$705,320 Increase
$35$285$684,000$33,915$717,915 Increase
$40$290$696,000$34,510$730,510 Increase
$45$295$708,000$35,105$743,105 Increase
$50$300$720,000$35,700$755,700 Slide 7 Conclusions School Committee
instituted fees to preserve educational programming due to fiscal
realities. The challenges faced in FY13 require consideration of
adjusting the level of subsidy families will pay for non- mandated
bus transportation to and from school. The Transportation Fee has
not been increased in three years despite inflationary increases in
our transportation costs. Slide 8 Shrewsbury Public School
Transportation Fee Considerations March 21, 2012 Questions and
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