Rick Gammill says allowing school students to ride Lawrence Transit System buses for half price is a great idea — even if it means fewer students riding school buses in the 2004-2005 academic year.

Lawrence Public Schools’ director of special operations, safety and transportation, Gammill said Tuesday the district wanted students to get to school any way they could.

“It’s good to have another option,” he said.

The Lawrence City Commission next week likely will consider a recommendation from the Public Transit Advisory Committee that would allow public school students to ride the T for 25 cents a trip.

“We see this as a way to complement the schools’ busing system and as an alternative,” Public Transit administrator Karin Rexroad said Tuesday.

Gammill said it could take longer for a student to get to school on a public bus because it would make more stops.

In the meantime, the district’s student transportation provider, Laidlaw Education Services, is sending out information to help families enroll for bus service for the upcoming school year.

Families should receive an enrollment letter by Friday from Laidlaw, Gammill said. If they don’t, they should contact the company.

The district does have a “Pay-to-Ride” program, which requires students living under 2.5 miles from their school to pay for transportation. The Lawrence school board approved the program, which was implemented in the 2002-2003 academic year.

If people pay by July 15, the program is $120 a semester or $240 a year per student. After July 15, the cost increases to $130 a semester or $260 a year. Kindergarten students are transported either to school in the morning or home in the afternoon for half the price.

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Fees are waived for students who live 2.5 miles or more from their school, qualify for the federal free and reduced-price meal program or have special needs.

Eligibility for the Pay-to-Ride program is based on distance requirements. Elementary students living 1.5 miles or more and junior high students living 2 miles or more from school are eligible.

Gammill said parents were “adamantly opposed” to paying for bus service in the first year of the “Pay-to-Ride” program. He said he has received relatively few complaints about it now, in its third year.

Based on data from the Kansas Department of Education, students riding the bus to school who live under 2.5 miles away has continually dropped since the 1998–1999 school year when about 1,964 students rode the bus. The most substantial decrease occurred in the first year of the Pay-to-Ride program. In the 2002-2003 school year, 868 Lawrence students living less than 2.5 miles from their school participated in the program. About 1,790 students rode the bus in the 2001-2002 school year.