A pandemic-delayed change to Madison middle school start times is now hurting some families’ bank accounts.
With those later start times, which began being implemented in fall 2019, the district planned to shift all middle schools from Madison Metro to yellow buses. But with an ongoing driver shortage for Badger Bus, the switch was put on hold before the final year of implementation.
That left only east siders to work with Metro this school year.
“That’s been delayed understandably because of driver shortages, that’s understandable and that is the situation we’re in,” Sennett Middle School parent Marilee Cronin said. “But the fact of the matter is that the west side families no longer need to rely on Metro.”
West side students didn’t need to worry about bus passes. Yet the rollout of bus passes to ensure east side families didn’t have to spend money was inconsistent, according to parents, with schools clearly not on the same page about the district offering free bus passes.
District spokesperson Tim LeMonds said the district offered free passes for all students who met the criteria for bus transportation: living more than 1.5 miles from their school.