Southbridge School Bus Overcrowding - Fox News, Boston

Ken O’Brien

Tammy Perreault

Fox News Channel 25 in Boston has carried a reporton claims of overcrowding on buses carrying students to the new Southbridge Middle/HighSchool.
The report was prompted by a local parent, WillimarisVega, contacting the station alleging that students were having to stand, sitthree to a seat or sit on the floor while travelling to and from the school.
In a telephone interview, school Principal TammyPerreault responded that officials had reacted quickly to the complaint,getting on the buses themselves to assess the situation.
The report as carried on the Fox 25 News website, aswell as the video, follows:
SOUTHBRIDGE(FOX 25 / MyFoxBoston.com) – A concerned parent in Southbridge reached out toFOX 25 after learning that her child was riding an overcrowded bus en route tothe district's new middle-high school.

It's a cautionary tale that happens almost every school year: overcrowdedbuses.

According to Willimaris Vega, her child, as well as many others, is beingforced to stand, sit three to a seat, or sit on the floor of the bus due to theovercrowding.

"Where's the safety of our kids? Where's? I mean somebody's gotta seethis," Willimaris said.

Tammy Perrault, the school's principal, told FOX 25 that the school actedswiftly in response to the complaint.

"We got on the buses ourselves to investigate, and to see with our owneyes, in order to better address it.  And then we handled it within thebuilding and within the bus company," Perrault said. 

The problem may have been handled in Southbridge, but overcrowding on busesis a widespread issue, Lynn Peterson of the School Transportation Associationof Massachusetts told FOX 25.

Parents in Stoughton also reached out to FOX 25 regarding a similar issue.Accordingto state and federal guidelines, students in kindergarten through sixth grademust have at least 13 inches of room on a seat on a bus, and a good rule ofthumb is two high school students per seat.

"It's like eggs in an egg carton.  The kids are safe when they're inthe confines of the seat, and the seat is padded so if there should be anaccident, they would be protected," Peterson said. Ultimately,the municipality, the bus company, and the police safety officer decideas a group, how many kids are assigned to a bus.  If parents areconcerned, they should contact their child's school.

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