Schools

School Bus Fees to Rise

The cost for an annual bus pass will go up next year from $520 to $550, school staff says.

The cost of a bus pass will be greater next school year.

The unanimously approved an increase of bus fees Tuesday.

The cost of an annual round-trip pass will rise from $520 to $550, and an annual one-way pass will go up from $260 to $275, according to a staff report.

Find out what's happening in Temeculawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Next year, the district will likely offer semester passes. A round-trip semester pass will cost $285, and a one-way pass will cost $147.

"With the increase of price, we need to give parents more payment options," said Jason Osbourn, the director of transportation.

Find out what's happening in Temeculawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

A single ride pass will rise from $3.25 to $4.41, according to the report.

Because of the fee hike, Temecula has one of the most expensive bus passes in the state. Only Poway costs more, at $560 for an annual round-trip pass, said Lori Ordway-Peck, the assistant superintendent of business services.

The increase is necessary because the state severely underfunds Temecula's transportation due to a technicality of the stipulations under which the district was incorporated, Ordway-Peck said.

"It's a very unfair system," she said.


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