SAUGUS — A number of school bus stops along Route 1 in Saugus have raised safety concerns from parents and officials.
Due to a national school-bus shortage, the town was forced to cut its fleet of buses down from six to two as the school year began.
The town’s official bus schedule shows a total of nine stops on Broadway, or Route 1, throughout the day; the buses provide service to elementary, middle, and high schoolers.
The fact that these school buses are stopping on busy Route 1 numerous times throughout the day is not just a concern for students, but for the parents and guardians picking them up. There are no sidewalks and no designated “stops” on the busy thoroughfare.
According to the Massachusetts State Police, the usual traffic law that mandates vehicles brake for a school bus when it is stopped and lights are flashing is not in play on a two-way, divided highway such as Route 1.
During a School Committee meeting on Sept. 24, Chairman Tom Whittredge stressed that the town is making this issue a priority.
“Please give us a call,” he said to constituents. “(A solution is) not overnight, but we will work on it.”
During the meeting, committee members also discussed how they have been moving bus stop locations to safer spots by working with the bus companies and parents.
“We want to thank the parents,” said Whittredge. “We work for you guys (and) our ears are always open.”
North Reading Transportation (NRT) works with the Saugus school system to provide school buses to the community. NRT creates the bus routes after student addresses are submitted to them.
After being contacted by WCVB for a news report that aired last Thursday, NRT reportedly altered one of its stops so that the bus picked up its young passengers in a parking lot near Route 1, rather than on the street proper.
Seana Blanchard, a mother of two from Saugus, told WCVB that she was “happy, but shocked” with the change.
NRT Chief Executive Officer John McCarthy told The Item that he was willing to discuss alternatives.
“If they don’t want to move the spots, then maybe there should be talk of a different type of vehicle,” he said. “If parents call us with concern, we can reach out to the school system.”
