LTC 428-2017 School Transportation Pilot ProgramMIAMIBEACH
OFFICE OF THE CITY MANAGER
NO. LTC #
428-2017
TO: Mayor rnillp Levina di iu „oers j f the City
FROM: Jimmy L. Morales, City Manager
DATE: August 16, 2017
LETTER TO COMMISSION
mission
SUBJECT: SCHOOL TRANSPORTATION PILOT PROGRAM
The purpose of this Letter to Commission (LTC) is to report on an upcoming school transportation
pilot program service that the City will be providing during morning school drop-off only for North
Beach Elementary and Biscayne Elementary during the Fall semester from August 21, 2017
through January 18, 2018.
At the February 24, 2016 Commission Workshop on Traffic Management, one of the mobility
improvement initiatives discussed was to provide school bus transportation for children who live
within two (2) miles from their home school.
On September 14, 2016, the City Commission accepted the recommendation of the
Neighborhood/Community Affairs Committee (NCAC) and Finance and Citywide Projects Committee
(FCWPC) to conduct a survey to identify transportation needs of public school children who live
within the two-mile limit of their home school. As such, the City developed an online survey and, with
the assistance of Miami -Dade County Public School (M-DCPS) system, the online survey was
distributed to all eligible parents/guardians of children attending South Pointe Elementary, Fienberg
Fisher K-8 Center, North Beach Elementary, Biscayne Elementary, Nautilus Middle School, and
Miami Beach Senior High School. A follow-up email was sent the week of September 26, 2016. The
survey was also distributed citywide via the City's social media platforms.
On March 1, 2017, the City Commission passed Resolution #2017-29779 approving a school
transportation pilot program for North Beach Elementary School and Biscayne Elementary School.
Based on staff follow-up with families who had confirmed participation in the pilot program prior to
the March 1, 2017 Commission meeting, the current number of students who have confirmed
participation in the program at this time is 30 for Biscayne Elementary and 20 for North Beach
Elementary (initially 22 and 70, respectively). Service will be provided by a M-DCPS approved
vendor with buses equipped with seat belts. Upon arrival at school, children will disembark at the
existing bus drop-off area and all children will be escorted by school staff to the school cafeteria
where breakfast will be available if so desired. Students will then be escorted by their teacher to the
classroom.
The City's Transportation Department has conducted test runs this week at both schools in
coordination with the schools' administration. Once the pilot program starts, while additional demand
may be accommodated using the established stops, it is recommended that no route modifications
be made in order to minimize adverse impact on the established schedule provided to the parents.
Plean feel free to contact me if you have any questions.
JLIVIZ RM
F:\TRA!\$ALL\LTC\LTCs Transit\LTC - School Transportation Pilot Program.docx