The cost of a one-way ride to or from school for public-school children will rise from 25 cents to 35 cents next month. And drivers won’t have change, so riders should plan on bringing exact coinage, said Hughes Ebinger, school
The cost of a one-way ride to or from school for public-school children will rise from 25 cents to 35 cents next month.
And drivers won’t have change, so riders should plan on bringing exact coinage, said Hughes Ebinger, school bus transportation officer with the state Department of Education.
The fare will rise on the first day of the second semester, which is Tuesday, Jan. 6 for students at Kapa’a High, Middle and Elementary and Kilauea schools, and Tuesday, Jan. 20, for all other public schools.
Even with the fare increase, the amount charged each rider doesn’t come close to covering the cost of providing the student transportation, he said.
Low-income students qualify for free or reduced-price transportation, using income guidelines verified by school officials similar to those for families qualifying for free or reduced-priced meals in school cafeterias.
County of Kaua’i officials used to partially subsidize public-school student transportation, a practice done away with during the terms of former Mayor Maryanne Kusaka, Ebinger said.
Now, only Maui County officials still subsidize public-school transportation.
On Kaua’i, public-school transportation services are coordinated by the state DOE through contracts with private companies.
