##VIDEO ID:bkIKZAny0z8##  FOR THE RECORD MY NAME IS HENRY SANTANA AT LARGE CITY COUNCILOR AND I AM THE CHAIR OF THE BOSTON CITY COUNCIL COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION. TODAY IS NOVEMBER SEVEN, 2024. THIS HEARING IS BEING RECORDED. IT IS ALSO BEING LIVESTREAMED AT BOSTON DOT GOV SLASH CITY COUNCIL ASK TV AND BROADCAST IT ON XFINITY CHANNEL EIGHT RCN CHANNEL 82 AND FILES CHANNEL 964. WRITTEN COMMENTS MAY BE SENT TO THE COMMITTEE EMAIL.  SEEK EDUCATION PASS FROM DOT GOV AND WE MADE PART OF THE RECORD AVAILABLE TO OUR COUNCILORS.  PUBLIC TESTIMONY WILL BE TAKEN AT THE END OF THIS HEARING. INDIVIDUALS WILL BE CALLED ON IN THE ORDER IN WHICH THEY SIGNED UP AND WILL HAVE 2 MINUTES TO TESTIFY. IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN TESTIFYING IN PERSON PLEASE ADD YOUR NAME TO THE SIGN UP NEAR THE ENTRANCE OF THE CHAMBER.  IF YOU ARE LOOKING TO TESTIFY VIRTUALLY PLEASE EMAIL OUR CENTRAL STAFF LIAISON. CHARISMA COHEN OUR CAREERS WANT OUR COHEN BOSS TO NOT GO FOR THE LINK AND YOUR NAME WILL BE ADDED TO THE LIST.  TODAY'S HEARING IS ON DOCKET NUMBER 0705. ORDER FOR A HEARING TO DISCUSS PUBLIC SCHOOLS TRANSPORTATION FOR STUDENT ATHLETES.  DOCKET NUMBER 1349. ORDER FOR A HEARING TO DISCUSS BOSTON PUBLIC SCHOOLS TRANSPORTATION FOR STUDENTS ON THE FIRST WEEK OF SCHOOL.  THESE MATTERS WERE SPONSORED BY COUNCILORS ED FLYNN, ERIN MURPHY AND JULIO MEJIA AND REFERRED TO THE COMMITTEE ON APRIL TEN, 2024 AND SEPTEMBER 11TH 2024. TODAY AM JOINED BY MY COLLEAGUES IN ORDER OF ARRIVAL COUNCILOR ED FLYNN, COUNCILOR ERIN MURPHY, VICE CHAIR OF THE COMMITTEE, COUNCILOR MARIA COUNCIL PRESIDENT LOUIJEUNE AND COUNCILOR PEPEN.  BEFORE WE BEGIN I'D LIKE TO JUST ASK FOLKS TO PLEASE SILENCE OUR PHONES AND DEVICES . I LIKE TO HAND THE FLOOR OVER NOW TO MY COLLEAGUES FOR OUR OPENING REMARKS BEGINNING WITH THE LEAD SPONSORS AND ORIGINAL CO-SPONSORS AND PROCEED IN THE ORDER AVAILABLE FOR ALL OF ALL OF OUR OTHER COLLEAGUES.  COUNCILOR FLYNN, YOU HAVE THE FLOOR.  THANK YOU. COUNCIL S.A. MR CHAIR FOR CHAIRING THIS IMPORTANT HEARING TODAY AND FOR COUNCILOR MURPHY WHO SPONSORED THIS COUNCIL AND MEJIA FOR YOUR IMPORTANT WORK FOR SPONSORING THIS. I ALSO WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT COUNCILOR FERNANDEZ ANDERSON HAS BEEN A STRONG ADVOCATE IN THIS FIELD AS WELL.  I WANT TO SAY THANK YOU TO THE PANEL FOR BEING HERE.  LOOK FORWARD TO DISCUSSING THE MANY CHALLENGES WE HAVE SEEN WITH BP BP'S TRANSPORTATION DURING THIS SCHOOL YEAR.  ACCORDING TO REPORTS, THE ONE TIME ARRIVAL RATE ON THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL THIS YEAR WAS ABOUT 34% WAS FAR BELOW THE STATE IMPROVEMENT PLAN TO HAVE 90 95% OF BUSSES ARRIVE ON TIME . SIMPLY UNACCEPTABLE.  I HAVE PERSONALLY SPOKEN TO MANY PARENTS, RECEIVED MANY CONCERNED EMAILS DESCRIBING BUS DELAYS FOR AS LONG AS 30 MINUTES, ONE HOUR, SEVERAL HOURS OR NO BUS SHOWING UP AT ALL AND PARENTS BEING FORCED TO TAKE TIME FROM WORK TO DRIVE THEIR CHILDREN RELY ON NEIGHBORS.  ONE PARENT I MET TOLD ME THEY DROVE THEIR CHILD FROM HIGH PARK TO A SALT END SCHOOL BECAUSE THEIR BUS DID NOT ARRIVE.  ANOTHER PARENT WROTE TO MY OFFICE SAYING THAT SHE TRACKED THE SCHOOL BUS ON THE NEWS ZOOM OUT FOR 45 MINUTES ONLY FOR THE APP TO BECOME UNAVAILABLE AN HOUR TO BRING HER CHILD TO SCHOOL. ON THE WAY BACK THE SAME CHILD IS ON THE SCHOOL BUS FOR OVER 2 HOURS FROM DORCHESTER TO SOUTH BOSTON.  THE DRIVER WENT THE WRONG WAY FOR WINDOW SQUARE BACK TO DORCHESTER BEFORE COMING BACK AGAIN TO SOUTH BOSTON.  IN FACT, THE CHILD HAD TO PROVIDE THE BUS DRIVER DIRECTIONS TO HIS HOUSE. ANOTHER PARENT FROM ROXBURY WAS AT THE JOSIAH QUINCY SCHOOL WHEN I WAS THERE AT 7 P.M. TO PICK UP HER DAUGHTER WHILE HER SCHOOL BUS WAS SUPPOSED TO ARRIVE AT HER HOME IN ROXBURY AT FOUR AT 4 P.M.. THE BUS NEVER ARRIVED.  THE MOTHER HAD TO TAKE AN UBER OR LYFT FROM ROXBURY TO JOSIAH QUINCY SCHOOL AT 7:00 TO PICK HER CHILD UP AND JUMP BACK ON THE UBER AGAIN AND LEFT TO GO BACK TO ROXBURY.  ANOTHER PARENT ALSO TOLD ME THAT A TEN YEAR OLD BOY WAS DROPPED OFF AT TACO BELL ON WEST BROADWAY IN SOUTH BOSTON AS THE BUS DRIVER COULD NOT FIND A STOP. THE CHILD WAS A MARINE ROBBED A MILE FROM TACO BELL. SOME OF THESE CASES ARE PUBLIC SAFETY ISSUES. WHEN WE LEAVE KIDS OUT THERE UNATTENDED THAT LONG AND ALTHOUGH OUR HEARING TODAY IS DIRECTED AT US TRANSPORTATION CHALLENGES IN THE FIRST WEEK WE ARE ALL WELL AWARE FROM THE CALLS AND EMAILS TO PARENTS THAT THIS WENT ON FAR TOO LONG . IN FACT I STILL HEAR FROM PARENTS WHOSE CHILDREN ARE ARRIVING 30 MINUTES LATE TO SCHOOL AND HAVE BEEN SENDING THEIR KIDS THEIR CASES TO US FOR THE LAST COUPLE OF MONTHS. WE ALSO NEED TO ADDRESS THE LEAD ON MISSING BUSSES FOR OUR STUDENT ATHLETES WHICH HAS BEEN GOING ON FOR YEARS.  IN APRIL THIS YEAR THE SCHOOL BUS FAILED TO SHOW UP TO TRANSPORT THE BASEBALL TEAM AT SOUTH BOSTON'S EXCEL HIGH SCHOOL FOR A GAME AT HAILEY FIELD IN JAMAICA PLAIN.  THE STUDENTS HAD TO JUMP ON THE EMPTY BUS INTO A SQUARE TO GET THERE. LAST MONTH EAST BOSTON HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL PLAYERS WAITED FOR OVER AN HOUR FOR A SCHOOL BUS TO TAKE THEM TO PLAY AGAINST O'BRIEN SCHOOL. BUT THE BUS NEVER SHOWED UP. BP TRANSPORTATION SERVES 22,000 STUDENTS ACROSS THE CITY. THERE NEEDS TO BE RELIABILITY PREDICTABILITY. IT'S SIMPLY UNACCEPTABLE FOR OUR STUDENTS, STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES AND THEIR PARENTS AND CARETAKERS TO WAIT FOR OVER 30 MINUTES FOR SCHOOL BUSSES TO PICK UP AND DROP OFF OUR STUDENT ATHLETES AND COACHES ALSO SHOULD NOT HAVE TO FIND OUT THAT BUSSES ARE NOT COMING AT THE LAST MINUTE AND SCRAMBLE TO MAKE OTHER PLANS. THE ANNUAL BUDGET FOR BP TRANSPORTATION WELL OVER $130 MILLION. IN THE FINAL ANALYSIS WE CANNOT NORMALIZE THIS DISRUPTION THAT HAS CAUSED OUR STUDENTS STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES STUDENT ATHLETES, PARENTS, TEACHERS, ADMINISTRATORS WITH LATE NO SHOW BUSSES.  MY FINAL POINT WHAT I'M ESPECIALLY CONCERNED ABOUT THE COST OF SCHOOL IN ROXBURY.  IN MY OPINION THE BEST SCHOOL IN THE CITY OF BOSTON FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES. HOW CAN WE SIT HERE AND NOT ADDRESS STUDENTS DISABILITIES IN WHEELCHAIRS BEING ONE HOUR LATE, GOING TO THE CAR TO SCHOOL OR GOING TO OTHER SCHOOLS THAT'S CRITICAL HELP THEY NEED FROM THEIR TEACHER, FROM THEIR PHYSICAL THERAPIST, FROM THEIR SOCIAL WORKER, FROM THEIR COUNSELOR NOT PROVIDING THAT STUDENT WITH EQUAL ACCESS TO SCHOOL.  IN MY OPINION IT'S A CIVIL RIGHTS VIOLATION. WE SHOULD NEVER EVER DO THAT TO STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES.  UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES SHOULD WE EVER DO THAT TO STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES. THAT'S WHAT'S REALLY THAT'S WHAT I'M REALLY ANGRY ABOUT HERE TODAY IS THAT THIS IS ALMOST ACCEPTED. IT'S NORMALIZED. BUT FOR THE PARENT OF A OF A STUDENT THAT'S TAKING THEIR CHILD TO THE CARTER SCHOOL OR TO JAKE U.S. AND PICKING UP THE STUDENT IN A WHEELCHAIR AND THEY'RE NOT GETTING THEIR PROPER NUMBER OF HOURS FOR PHYSICAL THERAPY.  UNCONSCIONABLE. UNCONSCIONABLE. THANK YOU, MR CHAIRMAN.  THANK YOU, COUNSELOR FLYNN, COUNSELOR MURPHY.  YOU HAVE THE FLOOR. THANK YOU, CHAIR. THANK YOU TO THE PANELISTS OVER . WE'RE HERE. IT'S IT'S A HARD CONVERSATION. I KNOW WE COULD FOCUS ON THE 90% THAT ARE GETTING THERE ON TIME, BUT I MEAN, I PRINTED OUT THE LATEST EMAILS, RIGHT? I STILL GET CALLS TEXT AND FOR ME THIS IS MY JOB TO UPLIFT THE VOICES OF THE FAMILIES THE PARENTS WHO IT'S JUST NOT WORKING FROM THEM. ONE PARENT THE OTHER DAY TOLD ME THAT THE BUS COMES WHEN IT WANTS TO BUT MY BOSS DOESN'T LET ME SHOW UP TO WORK WHEN I WANT TO SO THEY NO LONGER CAN PUT THEIR CHILD ON THE BUS BECAUSE THEY CAN'T RELY ON IT.  BUT IT'S COSTING THEM A LOT OF STRESS AND MONEY TO TRY TO FIND OTHER WAYS AND MANY TIMES MISSING SCHOOL SO FOR ME THE BUS TRANSPORTATION HAS ALWAYS BEEN DIRECTLY CONNECTED TO GIVING OUR CHILDREN ACCESS TO EDUCATION. THE MAJORITY OF OUR 22,000 STUDENTS WHO ARE ASSIGNED TO OUR BUSSES ARE STUDENTS ON IEPS . THE NUMBER OF STUDENTS WHO NOW HAVE DOOR TO DOOR DOOR TO DOOR SERVICE WRITTEN RIGHT INTO THEIR IEPS AND THE PERCENTAGE INCREASE OF STUDENTS WHO HAVE BUS MONITORS WRITTEN INTO THEIR IEPS HAS GONE THROUGH THE ROOF. I KNOW WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THIS BEFORE DAN NOW SO WE'RE VIOLATING FEE RIGHT THERE FREE AND APPROPRIATE RIGHT TO EDUCATION AND THAT'S NOT WE CAN'T BE DOING THAT AND TODAY IS DAY 45 OF THE SCHOOL YEAR. THAT MEANS 25% OF THE SCHOOL YEAR IS ALREADY OVER AND WE'RE STILL ISSUES WITH LATE SCHOOL BUSSES. WE HAVEN'T MET THAT 95% MARK. I THINK WE'RE AROUND 90 AND IN THE EVENING EVEN THOUGH WE SAID WE DIDN'T HAVE THE DATA ON THE BUSSES WHEN I WENT BACK AND WATCHED THE LAST FEW SCHOOL COMMITTEE MEETINGS I KNOW THEY WERE GIVEN THE PERCENTAGE OF 79% RATE FOR GETTING KIDS HOME IN THE AFTERNOON SO THAT MEANS OVER 2000 STUDENTS EVERY MORNING ARE STILL ARRIVING LATE TO SCHOOL AND NOT I DON'T KNOW THE EXACT NUMBER BUT OF THAT 2000 MANY PARENTS AND PRINCIPALS AND TEACHERS WILL SAY IF THEY DON'T HAVE ANOTHER OPTION AND THEY CAN'T WAIT THEN THEY'RE MISSING SCHOOL ALTOGETHER.  SO IT'S DIRECTLY CONNECTED TO OUR CHRONIC ABSENTEEISM AND WE SPEND $171 MILLION ON OUR BUSSING NOW IT'S A $950,000 EVERY DAY AND WE'VE ALREADY SPENT IF YOU SAY 25% OF THE SCHOOL YEAR OVER WE'VE ALREADY SPENT CLOSE TO 43 MILLION OVER $42 MILLION HAS ALREADY BEEN SPENT AND WE'RE STILL STRUGGLING GETTING KIDS TO SCHOOL.  SO FOR ME IT'S ABOUT GETTING IT RIGHT.  IT'S ABOUT WORKING WITH YOU. IT'S NOT ABOUT SHAMING.  IT'S NOT ABOUT THIS COUNSELOR'S TRYING TO MAKE TROUBLE THIS YOU KNOW, I WOULD LOVE TO GO TO JUST RIBBON CUTTINGS AND CHAMPIONSHIP BASKETBALL GAMES. I WOULD LOVE TO BE SELLOUT WHICH I DO DO WHEN I WISH BUT THAT'S NOT MY JOB. MY JOB IS TO MAKE SURE THAT CITY SERVICES ARE WORKING FOR THE RESIDENTS OF THE CITY OF BOSTON.  AND WHEN TIME AND TIME AGAIN PARENTS ARE CALLING AND THEY'RE CONCERNED AND THERE WAS A PRINCIPAL AT THE LAST SCHOOL COMMITTEE MEETING WHO SAID SHE STILL HAS TO SCHOOL BUSSES ARRIVING SO LATE TO SCHOOL THAT THERE ARE STUDENTS ON THOSE TWO SCHOOL BUSSES ARE MISSING TWO AND A HALF HOURS OF LEARNING EVERY DAY STILL AND MANY PRINCIPALS HAVE TOLD ME THAT THEY'VE SWITCHED TO A WATERFALL SCHEDULE WHICH MEANS THAT THE AMOUNT OF STUDENTS WHO ARE ARRIVING PASSED THE MORNING BELL WHICH MEANS THEY'RE MISSING BREAKFAST, THEY'RE MISSING MORNING CIRCLE AND THIS IS GRADES ALL THE WAY THROUGH AGE. SO NOT JUST OUR YOUNGEST LEARNERS THAT THEY'RE IN THE WATERFALL SCHEDULE MEANS THAT MAYBE YOU ALWAYS HAD MATH FIRST PERIOD OR YOU HAD READING FIRST PERIOD. THEY'RE HAVING THEIR TEACHERS ADJUST THEIR SCHEDULES SO THAT IT'S NOT THE SAME PERIOD, THERE'S NOT THE SAME SUBJECT THEY'RE MISSING EVERY DAY. SO MONDAY CAN BE MATH BUT KNOWING THAT THIS CHILD OR THIS GROUP OF CHILDREN ARE GOING TO BE LAID EVERY DAY YOU CAN'T HAVE MATH ON TUESDAY HAVE IT BE READING SO THEY'RE ONLY MISSING A LITTLE BIT WHICH I GUESS SOFTENS THE BLOW. BUT IT'S NOT ACCEPTABLE. SO WE HAVE WE HAVE TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR KIDS ARE GETTING TO SCHOOL ON TIME. WE HAVE TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE NOT JUST BLAMING AN APP OR BLAMING TRANSDEV OR WHEN PARENTS CALL THE SCHOOL THE SCHOOL TELLS THEM TO CALL THE BUS STAR.  WHEN THEY CALL THE BUS YARD THEY SAY TO CALL THE SCHOOL. I WISH I HOPE THAT WE CAN GET TO A POINT WHERE NO ONE HAS TO CALL ANYONE BECAUSE THE BUSSES ARE SHOWING UP ON TIME AND I KNOW THAT COUNCIL FLYNN AND I FILED THIS HEARING ORDER BACK IN THE SPRING THAT THAT WE DIDN'T HAVE YET WHICH CONNECTED TO THE ATHLETIC. SO THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE. AND WHAT WE WERE TOLD THEN IS THAT THE TRANSITION BETWEEN NO ONE'S FALL SPORTS AND WINTER SPORTS STARTS OR WINTERS TRANSITIONING TO SPRING THAT IT'S JUST ALWAYS BEEN THE FIRST FEW WEEKS JUST DON'T WORK OUT. BUT WE WE HAVE TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO MAKE THAT WORK. THERE WAS A PARENT WHO CALLED ME A COUPLE OF WEEKS AGO WHERE THERE WAS A SPECIAL ED EVENT FOR SOME SOCCER AT THE GARVEY PARK AND HER AND HER HUSBAND LEFT WORK AND THE BUS NEVER CAME TO THEIR SCHOOL. THEIR CHILD SCHOOL SO THEY WERE THERE TO CHEER ON THEIR KID AND TOOK TIME OFF OF WORK AND THEIR KID WAS NEVER THERE. THEIR KID NEVER GOT THEIR AND THAT'S JUST ONE OF MANY EXAMPLES. SO HOPEFULLY WE CAN GET TO A POINT WHERE IT IT JUST WORKS OR WE HAVE TO GET TO A POINT WHERE WE FIGURE OUT HOW WE QUICKLY CAN LOWER THE RIDERSHIP AND HOW DO WE GET KIDS OFF OF BUSSES IF IT'S NOT WORKING FOR THEM AND THAT IS SOMETHING I HOPE WE TALK ABOUT AND I DO JUST WANT TO UPLIFT THAT.  I DID INVITE K SALES FROM SPECIAL ED. I KNOW ALL KIDS MISSING ANY ACADEMICS IS IMPORTANT BUT TO MAKE SURE WE SPOKE DIRECTLY TO SOMEONE IN ACADEMICS WITH THE SUPERINTENDENT DEPARTMENT BECAUSE THE AMOUNT OF TIME KIDS ARE MISSING AND THE DIRECT SERVICES THEY'RE MISSING AND I KNOW FOR A FACT THAT IF YOU'RE LATE FOR SCHOOL AND YOU MISSED YOUR PARTY OR YOU MISSED SPEECH SO THEY DON'T HAVE TO FILE IT AS COMPENSATORY SERVICES, THEY OFTEN WILL PULL THE KID FROM RECESS. THEY'LL HAVE THEM NOT GO TO LUNCH AND MAKE UP A SERVICE AND I KNOW THAT'S HAPPENING ACROSS THE SYSTEM AND THAT TEACHERS ARE AFRAID TO ADMIT IT AND THEY DON'T WANT TO SHARE AND THEY DON'T HAVE TO SHARE IT WITH THE PARENTS IF THEY ACTUALLY GET THE SERVICE BEFORE THE END OF THE DAY. BUT THEN PARENTS ARE SAYING WHY DOES MY KIDS SAY THEY DON'T GO TO LUNCH? HOW COME I KID DIDN'T GET TO GO TO RECESS?  SO AND I KNOW THAT LIKE BROKEN PHRASE ARE WE SHOULD DO BETTER. WE CAN DO BETTER. WE HAVE TO DO BETTER. AND SO I'M HERE TO MAKE SURE THAT I'M SUPPORTING TO MAKE SURE IT GETS BETTER. SO THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE AND I HOPE WE HAVE A PRODUCTIVE MEETING. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. COUNCILMAN MURPHY, I WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT WE'VE BEEN JOINED BY COUNCILOR WEBER AND COUNSELOR BREEDEN. I ALSO WANT TO CORRECT MYSELF. I THINK I MISSPOKE EARLIER. I'M ALLOWING THE LEAD THE LEAD SPONSORS TO GIVE OPENING STATEMENTS. BUT THEN WE'LL GO OVER TO OUR PANEL.  WE APPRECIATE MY COLLEAGUES BEING HERE COUNSELOR MEJIA YOU HAVE THE FLOOR. GOOD AFTERNOON. IT'S GOOD TO SEE YOU ALL. AND I WANTED TO START OFF WITH GRATITUDE BECAUSE OFTENTIMES IT'S THIS IS A VERY THANKLESS JOB.  I KNOW IT IS BECAUSE I'M IN IT ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THINGS.  BUT YOU KNOW, IT'S HARD WORK THAT WE ARE DOING HERE AND I JUST WANT TO START OFF ACKNOWLEDGING THAT IT IS NOT EASY TO SIT IN THESE SEATS AND HEAR THE COUNTLESS WAYS IN WHICH WE HAVE TO BRING THE VOICES OF OUR CONSTITUENTS INTO THIS CHAMBER AND THE THINGS THAT THEY CARRY. RIGHT. SO OUR JOB REALLY IS IS TO TELL THEIR STORIES AND TO WORK WITH YOU AND THE ADMINISTRATION TO HELP FIGURE OUT HOW WE'RE GOING TO ALLEVIATE THE BURDEN THAT SO MANY FAMILIES HAVE TO FACE WHEN THE BUSSES DON'T SHOW UP WHEN THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO OR WHEN FAMILIES ARE AFRAID BECAUSE THEY'RE UNDOCUMENTED AND THEIR CHILD IS, YOU KNOW, 2 HOURS LATE AND THEY DON'T KNOW WHAT TO CALL OR WHAT TO SAY OR HOW TO EVEN SAY IT. RIGHT. SO ALL OF THESE THINGS ARE REAL. SO I JUST WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT I KNOW IT'S NOT EASY AND SO I DO APPRECIATE YOU ALL BEING HERE AND I REALLY DO. AND YOU KNOW, I'M AN ALLY. I'VE BEEN TO YOUR DEPARTMENT.  I'VE HUNG OUT WITH YOUR WORKERS. I KNOW HOW HARD YOU WORK. I PICKED UP THE CALLS.  I'VE YOU'VE ALLOWED ME TO INTERACT WITH THE CONSTITUENTS SO I KNOW THAT YOU ARE DOING EVERYTHING IN YOUR POWER TO GET IT RIGHT AND SOMETIMES IT CAN FEEL DEMORALIZING WHEN YOU COME IN HERE AND HEAR THE LONG LINES OF THINGS THAT WE ALL HAVE TO SAY AND INCLUDING MYSELF I SAY THOSE THINGS TO.  BUT FOR ME OFTENTIMES IT'S JUST OUT OF FRUSTRATION BECAUSE WE HAVE TO BEAR THE BRUNT OF THE WRATH OF THE PARENTS THAT ARE CALLING US AND BLOWING UP OUR PHONES AND COMPLAINING ABOUT EVERYTHING SO I'M JUST HERE TO BRING THOSE VOICES INTO THE SPACE AND I ALSO KNOW THAT THIS I FEEL I'VE SOME OF Y'ALL ARE NEW FACES BUT YOU KNOW YOU'VE BEEN HERE BUT YOU'RE DELL IS NO LONGER YOU'RE LIKE THERE'S BEEN TRANSITIONS RIGHT AND TRANSITIONS IMPACT ALSO JUST KIND OF LIKE THE FLOW OF THINGS I JUST WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE ALL OF THOSE THINGS AND AND THAT'S WE ARE NOW IN A MOMENT WHERE WE'VE HEARD FROM THE BUS DRIVER AS WE'VE HEARD FROM THE BUS MONITORS WE'VE HEARD FROM PARENTS YOU KNOW, WE'VE HEARD FROM EDUCATORS, WE'VE HEARD FROM EVERYBODY AND NOW IT'S AN OPPORTUNITY TO HEAR FROM Y'ALL . I THINK THIS REALLY PRESENTS YOU ALL WITH AN OPPORTUNITY TO REALLY HELP INFORM US SO THAT WHEN THE BUDGET CYCLE HITS WE ARE THINKING ABOUT THE THINGS THAT YOU'RE SHARING WITH US. SO I'M THIS IS JUST CODE FOR YOU TO UTILIZE THIS SPACE MORE STRATEGICALLY AND I WANT TO OFFER THAT BECAUSE I THINK COUNCIL READING COUNCILOR FLYNN AND MYSELF WE'RE THE MOST WE'RE THE OLDEST WITH THE MOST WE CAME IN WE'VE BEEN HERE THE LONGEST AND IT'S ONLY BEEN FOUR YEARS WHICH IS REALLY SCARY BECAUSE THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF TURNOVER EVEN ON THIS COUNCIL RIGHT?  SO UNDERSTANDING ALL OF THAT I THINK IT'S FAIR TO SAY THAT WE HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO RESET AND LEVEL SET AND TRY TO FIGURE OUT HOW WE'RE GOING TO GET THIS RIGHT.  AND SO MY DAUGHTER'S AN ATHLETE SO THE THINGS THAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT IMPACT MY DAUGHTER SHE'S A STUDENT AND AS A GRADUATE AND AS A BIPS ADVOCATE WHO WORKED IN THIS SPACE BEFORE COMING INTO THIS CHAMBER, THE NUMBER ONE ISSUE WELL THERE WERE LOTS OF ISSUES BUT ONE OF THE BIGGEST ISSUES WAS TRANSPORTATION AND IT CONTINUES TO BE CONSISTENTLY THE BIGGEST ISSUE THAT I FEEL WE'RE GETTING TO A GOOD PLACE BUT I DON'T THINK WE'VE MANAGED TO MAKE THE MOMENT JUST YET. SO I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO THIS HEARING AND CREATING SPACE FOR US TO FIGURE OUT HOW DO WE MOVE FROM HERE AND THANK YOU.  THANK YOU. THANK YOU COUNCILMEMBER HERE I'D LIKE TO ACKNOWLEDGE EXCUSE ME I'D LIKE TO ACKNOWLEDGE THIS TIME WE'VE ALSO BEEN JOINED BY COUNCILOR FITZGERALD.  THANK YOU TO MY COLLEAGUES AT THIS TIME I'D LIKE TO PROVIDE AN OVERVIEW OF THE PANEL AS THE COMMITTEE INVITED TO TESTIFY ON BEHALF OF THE ADMINISTRATION STARTING WITH DAN ROSENGARD WHO IS THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF TRANSPORTATION FOR BOSTON PUBLIC SCHOOLS. BRIAN FORD IS THE CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER FOR BOSTON PUBLIC SCHOOLS. JACQUELINE HAYES, THE DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF TRANSPORTATION FOR PREP'S AMY DANIELS SENIOR PROGRAM AND OPERATIONS MANAGER FOR BIPS. ADDITIONALLY, THE COMMITTEE ALSO INVITED A REPRESENTATIVE FROM TRANSDEV WHICH IS THE VENDOR THAT PROVIDES THE YELLOW SCHOOL BUS SERVICE FOR VIPS AND THAT PERSON WAS JAMES FALK WHO'S THE GENERAL MANAGER FOR TRANSIT OF NORTH AMERICA FOR THE PANELISTS WHO ARE HERE TODAY, I'D LIKE TO ASK EACH OF YOU TO JUST STATE YOUR NAME AND TITLE FOR THE RECORD AND ONCE EVERYONE HAS INTRODUCED THEMSELVES WE'LL MOVE TO OPENING REMARKS AND YOUR PRESENTATION.  GOOD AFTERNOON.  MY NAME IS BRIAN FORD. I'M THE CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER FOR BOSTON PUBLIC SCHOOLS. THANK YOU.  GOOD AFTERNOON. JACQUELYN HAYES, DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF TRANSPORTATION FOR BOSTON PUBLIC SCHOOLS. THANK YOU. DAN ROSENGARD, THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF TRANSPORTATION FOR BOSTON PUBLIC SCHOOLS. THANK YOU.  AMY DANIELS SENIOR PROGRAMS AND OPERATIONS MANAGER FOR THE BOSTON PUBLIC SCHOOLS ATHLETICS DEPARTMENT. GREAT. THANK YOU. SO FEEL FREE TO START OUR OPENING STATEMENT OR PRESENTATION AND THEN WE'LL MOVE FORWARD WITH COUNSELORS QUESTIONS. THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE.  THANK YOU, COUNSELOR SANTANA THANK YOU KNOW ALL THE COUNSELORS WHO ARE HERE TODAY. WE REALLY APPRECIATE THE OPPORTUNITY TO BE HERE WITH YOU ALL BOSTON STUDENTS DESERVE SAFE, RELIABLE AND ON TIME TRANSPORTATION TO TAKE THEM TO AND FROM SCHOOL SO THEY AREN'T MISSING TIME IN THE CLASSROOM AND TO TAKE THEM TO AND FROM THEIR SPORTS GAMES AND THEIR FIELD TRIPS. KEY COMPONENTS OF THE EDUCATIONAL EXPERIENCE FOR TOO LONG TRANSPORTATION IN BOSTON HAS BEEN DONE ONE WAY WITH A PAPER BASED OUTDATED SYSTEM THAT DID NOT WORK OPERATIONALLY AND DID NOT WORK FOR OUR STUDENTS.  ALTHOUGH WE'VE MADE IMPROVEMENTS IN RECENT YEARS WE KNEW THAT WE WERE NOT GOING TO BUILD THE SYSTEM THAT OUR STUDENTS DESERVE USING THAT OUTDATED APPROACH THIS YEAR WE IMPLEMENTED A SYSTEM WIDE TECHNOLOGICAL UPGRADE TO MODERNIZE OUR OPERATION.  CHANGE IS NEVER EASY AND THIS CHANGE CAME WITH SIGNIFICANT GROWING PAINS RESULTING IN UNACCEPTABLE PERFORMANCE FOR MANY STUDENTS AT THE START OF THE SCHOOL YEAR OUR TEAM HAS BEEN WORKING URGENTLY AND WE'VE MADE SIGNIFICANT GAINS SINCE THEN AND I REALLY APPRECIATE AGAIN THE OPPORTUNITY TO BE HERE TODAY TO TALK WITH THE CITY COUNCIL ABOUT WHAT WE'RE DOING TO BUILD A SUSTAINABLE EFFECTIVE TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM FOR BOSTON STUDENTS FOR THE LONG TERM AND TO MAKE SURE THAT TRANSPORTATION AT THE START OF THE SCHOOL YEAR AND FOR OUR STUDENT ATHLETES CONTINUES TO IMPROVE EACH YEAR. WE WANT TO LEAVE AS MUCH TIME AS POSSIBLE FOR QUESTIONS AND DISCUSSION. WE DO HAVE A RELATIVE BRIEF PRESENTATION TO PROVIDE SOME CONTEXT AND DATA TO HELP SUPPORT THAT CONVERSATION IN THIS PRESENTATION WE'LL FIRST GIVE A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF TRANSPORTATION AND IN THE SERVICES WE PROVIDE. SECOND, DISCUSS OUR PERFORMANCE SO FAR THIS SCHOOL YEAR INCLUDING THE SIGNIFICANT UNDERPERFORMANCE AT THE START OF THE YEAR THE RECOVERY AND IMPROVEMENTS WE'VE SEEN OVER THE PAST TWO MONTHS AND THE ONGOING WORK TO CONTINUE TO IMPROVE AND PUSH SERVICE LEVELS BEYOND WHERE THEY'VE GOTTEN IN PRIOR YEARS.  AND FINALLY WE WILL TALK SPECIFICALLY ABOUT ATHLETICS, TRANSPORTATION FOR OUR STUDENT ATHLETES. WITH THAT CONTEXT, WE'LL BEGIN WITH AN OVERVIEW OF OUR OPERATION AND I KNOW THAT FONT IS RELATIVELY SMALL SO I APOLOGIZE FOR THAT. WE PROVIDE BUS TRANSPORTATION TO OVER 22,000 STUDENTS ACROSS OVER 200 SCHOOLS. AS MANY OF YOU KNOW, OUR TOTAL RIDERSHIP HAS BEEN CONSISTENTLY DECLINING OVER THE PAST DECADE WITH THE NUMBER OF RIDERS DOWN 13% SINCE THE 2018 2019 SCHOOL YEAR.  WE ALSO PROVIDE YELLOW BUSSES FOR OVER 1500 ATHLETICS AND FIELD TRIPS EACH SEASON OR ABOUT 5000 SUCH TRIPS EACH YEAR AND WE PROVIDE ABOUT 30,000 M7 MBTA PASSES TO ALL SEVEN THROUGH 12TH GRADE STUDENTS WHO LIVE IN BOSTON.  OUR OPERATION DOES NOT JUST SERVE STUDENTS BUT ALL BOSTON STUDENTS. WE RUN BUSSES FOR 119 SCHOOLS AS WELL AS 25 CHARTER SCHOOLS AND 16 PRIVATE PAROCHIAL SCHOOLS.  WE ALSO PROVIDE TRANSPORTATION FOR STUDENTS ATTENDING ALMOST 75 OUT OF DISTRICT SPECIAL EDUCATION SCHOOLS.  IN TOTAL ABOUT 23% OF THE STUDENTS WE SERVE AND ABOUT 49% OF THE SCHOOLS WE SERVE ARE NON DPS.  I ALSO WANT TO SPEND A MINUTE TALKING SPECIFICALLY ABOUT THE SERVICE THAT WE PROVIDE FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES WHO ARE SOME OF OUR MOST VULNERABLE STUDENTS WHO MOST RELY ON THE SCHOOL BUS TO GET THEM TO AND FROM SCHOOL EACH DAY WE HAVE ABOUT 6800 STUDENTS WHO RECEIVE DOOR TO DOOR TRANSPORTATION OPEN DOOR TO DOOR TRANSPORTATION IS A TRANSPORTATION ACCOMMODATION BASED ON STUDENT SPECIFIC NEEDS AND DOCUMENTED WITHIN A STUDENT'S IEP OR 504 PLAN IN WHICH A STUDENT IS PICKED UP AND DROPPED OFF AT THE CLOSEST ACCESSIBLE LOCATION TO THEIR HOME ADDRESS.  WE ALSO PROVIDE BUS MONITORS FOR OVER 2600 STUDENTS INCLUDING 500 STUDENTS WHO HAVE A 1 TO 1 BUS MONITOR IN THEIR IEP. A BUS MONITOR IS AN ADDITIONAL ADULT ON THE BUS THERE TO SUPPORT THOSE STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES AND THESE STUDENTS ARE OUR MOST VULNERABLE STUDENTS AND I JUST HAVE THE UTMOST RESPECT AND APPRECIATION FOR OUR BUS MONITORS AND THE WORK THAT THEY DO EVERY SINGLE DAY TO SUPPORT OUR STUDENTS.  IT'S NOT EASY.  WHILE OVERALL RIDERSHIP HAS BEEN DECLINING, AS I NOTED EARLIER, THE NUMBER OF STUDENTS WHO REQUIRE THESE ACCOMMODATIONS HAS BEEN GROWING WITH THE NUMBER OF STUDENTS WITH DOOR TO DOOR UP 24% AND THE NUMBER OF MONITOR REQUIRED STUDENTS UP 100% SINCE THE 20 1819 SCHOOL YEAR. THESE INCREASES MEAN THAT WHILE OVERALL RIDERSHIP HAS DECLINED, THE VOLUME OF TRANSPORTATION SERVICE HAS NOT.  WE HAVE MORE AS WE HAVE MORE DOOR TO DOOR STUDENTS RELATIVE TO STUDENTS WHO ARE CENTRALLY LOCATED CORNER STOPS THE TOTAL NUMBER OF OUR BUS STOPS IN OUR SYSTEM IS INCREASING AND THESE STOPS TYPICALLY NEED TO BE ON SMALLER BUSSES THAT CAN NAVIGATE SMALLER SIDE STREETS RESULTING IN LONGER MORE COMPLEX ROUTES WITH FEWER STUDENTS ON EACH ROUTE.  FINALLY I WANT TO SPEAK BRIEFLY ABOUT OUR OVERALL WORKFORCE AND FLEET THAT ALLOW US TO PROVIDE THIS BUS SERVICE. WE WORK WITH A BUS VENDOR TRANSDEV WHO MAINTAINS AND OPERATES THE BUSSES AND HIRES AND EMPLOYS BUS DRIVERS. TRANSDEV HAS 894 TOTAL BUS DRIVERS INCLUDING 740 ACTIVE AND 21 CURRENT TRAINEES. WE ALSO CURRENTLY HAVE 718 BUS MONITORS AND 34 SOON TO BE HIRES PENDING HIRES.  OUR BUS FLEET CONSISTS OF 728 TOTAL BUSSES INCLUDING 640 AND USE ON A DAILY BASIS. WE'VE BEEN WORKING IN RECENT YEARS TO ELECTRIFY THIS FLEET AND RIGHT NOW 5% OF THE FLEET CONSISTS OF ELECTRIC SCHOOL BUSSES.  MOVING TO THE NEXT SLIDE, AS I MENTIONED EARLIER, THE WAY THAT WE'VE PROVIDED BUS SERVICE HAS BEEN RELATIVELY UNCHANGED OVER THE PAST 50 YEARS BUT THIS YEAR WE ROLLED OUT A NEW TECHNOLOGY XOOM ACROSS OUR OPERATION. WE DEPLOYED THIS OVER THE SUMMER FOR EXTENDED SCHOOL YEAR STUDENTS AND ACROSS OUR ENTIRE OPERATION AT THE START OF THE FALL. SO WHAT IS ZOOM ZOOM PROVIDES AN INTEGRATED TECHNOLOGY SYSTEM ACROSS ALL ASPECTS OF OUR OPERATION.  I WILL BRIEFLY REVIEW THE MAIN COMPONENTS WHAT ARE THEY? WHAT DID THEY REPLACE AND WHAT DOES THAT CHANGE MEAN?  AT THE HEART OF TRANSPORTATION IS THE BUS DRIVER ZOOM PROVIDES EACH BUS DRIVER WITH AN ONBOARD GPS NAVIGATION TABLET WHICH REPLACES PAPER MANIFESTS AND PAPER DIRECTIONS. THE TABLET PROVIDES GPS NAVIGATION TO EACH STOP. AT EACH STOP THE TABLET PROVIDES A LIST OF THE STUDENTS ASSIGNED TO GET ON AND OFF THE BUS AT THAT STOP AS WELL AS PICTURES OF THE STUDENT. IF THE PARENT HAS UPLOADED A PICTURE OF THE TABLET PROVIDES SIMPLIFIED NAVIGATION AND MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE STUDENTS ON THE BUS RELATIVE TO THE PAPER DIRECTIONS TO HELP KEEP OUR STUDENTS SAFE WHEN A BUS IS RUNNING LATE OR SOMETHING ELSE HAPPENS ON THE ROAD THAT REQUIRES A COVERING OR STANDBY DRIVER TO BE SENT IN REAL TIME ,THE ROUTE CAN BE SENT TO THAT DRIVER'S TABLET IMMEDIATELY MAKING THINGS EASIER FOR COVERING DRIVERS AND ENSURING THAT PARENTS CAN STILL TRACK THE CORRECT BUS. AND IF STUDENTS ARE NOT RIDING THE BUS AND THE PARENT HAS CANCELED THE RIDE IN ADVANCE OR IN THE AFTERNOON IF THE STUDENT WASN'T MARKED AS PICKED UP AT THE SCHOOL, THE ROUTE IS AUTOMATICALLY ADJUSTED SO THAT THE DRIVER ONLY NEEDS TO GO TO THE STOPS THAT HAVE STUDENTS RIDING THAT DAY TO IMPROVE OVERALL EFFICIENCY.  AGAIN, THE DRIVER IS REALLY THE HEART OF THE TRANSPORTATION OPERATION AND I WANT TO ALSO TAKE A SECOND TO GIVE A HUGE SHOUT OUT TO OUR BUS DRIVERS AND ALL THE HARD WORK THAT THEY PUT IN EVERY DAY.  IT'S NOT AT ALL AN EASY JOB. IT'S VERY, VERY DIFFICULT AND OUR DRIVERS HAVE PUT IN SIGNIFICANT WORK THIS YEAR TO LEARN AND ADAPT TO A NEW SYSTEM AND WE REALLY COULDN'T DO IT WITHOUT THEM.  SO NEXT WE HAVE THE PARENT AND GUARDIAN EXPERIENCE THE ZOO MOBILE APP ALLOWS PARENTS AND GUARDIANS TO SEE THEIR STUDENTS BUS ASSIGNMENT AND UPCOMING RIDES TO CANCEL IN ADVANCE ANY UPCOMING RIDES WHERE THE STUDENT WON'T BE USING THE BUS TO TRACK THEIR STUDENTS BUS IN REAL TIME SEE HOW MANY STOPS AWAY WAY IT IS AND GET AN ETA AND TO GET AUTOMATED NOTIFICATIONS WHEN THE BUS IS RUNNING LATE WHEN THE BUSSES ARRIVING TO THE STOP AND WHEN THEIR STUDENT IS PICKED UP AND DROPPED OFF THIS APP REPLACED THE WHERE'S MY SCHOOL BUS SITE WHICH PROVIDED PARENTS WITH A MORE LIMITED EXPERIENCE IN WHICH THEY SAW A BUS MOVING AROUND THE MAP BUT WITHOUT ANY OF THE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION AND IT WAS ALSO SIGNIFICANTLY MORE LIMITED IN ITS ABILITY TO TRACK COVERING BUSSES.  THE ZOOM APP PROVIDES MORE TRANSPARENCY AND PROACTIVE COMMUNICATIONS FOR FAMILIES AND HELPS TO IMPROVE STUDENT SAFETY . FINALLY, XOOM PROVIDES A DISPATCH CONTROL CENTER FOR DISPATCH. OUR OPERATIONS AND CUSTOMER SERVICE TEAM AND SCHOOL STAFF THE DISPATCH CONTROL CENTER VIEW PROVIDES REAL TIME TRACKING OF ALL THE BUSSES ON THE ROAD AND PROACTIVE IDENTIFICATION OF THE BUSSES RUNNING LATE. THIS REPLACES A PREVIOUS GPS TRACKING SYSTEM IN WHICH WE COULD TRACK THE BUSSES ON THE ROAD BUT ONLY KNEW A BUS WAS RUNNING LATE WHEN SOMEBODY TOLD US WHETHER THE DRIVER RADIOED IN OR THE SCHOOL OR FAMILY CALLED IN TO ASK ABOUT THE BUS. NO SYSTEM IS PERFECT BUT THE ZOOM SYSTEM PROVIDES AN INTEGRATED TECHNOLOGY SOLUTION THAT HELPS TO STREAMLINE OUR OPERATIONS, IMPROVE TRANSPARENCY AND COMMUNICATIONS, IMPROVE STUDENT SAFETY AND HELP US SHIFT FROM AN OVERALL REACTIVE TO PROACTIVE MINDSET.  THAT SAID, WANT TO TALK ABOUT THE START OF THIS SCHOOL YEAR? AS I MENTIONED EARLIER CHANGES HARD AND WE EXPECTED GROWING PAINS WITH A LARGE SYSTEM WIDE CHANGE LIKE THIS ONE WE EXPECTED AND AN INITIAL DIP IN OUR PERFORMANCE AS WE WORK THROUGH THESE GROWING PAINS. BUT I WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT WE SAW A LARGER DIP THAN EXPECTED AND THAT THIS HAD A VERY SIGNIFICANT AND NEGATIVE IMPACT ON STUDENTS, FAMILIES AND SCHOOLS ACROSS BOSTON.  AS MANY BUSSES SAW SIGNIFICANT DELAYS PARTICULARLY AT THE START OF THE YEAR. FOR THAT I DEEPLY APOLOGIZE.  OUR TEAM HAS BEEN WORKING WITH URGENCY TO ADDRESS THE ISSUES WE SAW AT THE START OF THE YEAR AND MAKE RAPID IMPROVEMENTS.  OUR PRIMARY MEASURE OF OUR PERFORMANCE IS ON TIME PERFORMANCE OR WHAT WE CALL OTP IN THE MORNING.  OTP MEASURES THE PERCENTAGE OF BUSSES THAT ARRIVE AT SCHOOL PRIOR TO THE MORNING BELL IN THE AFTERNOON. OTP MEASURES THE PERCENTAGE OF BUSSES THAT ARRIVE AT SCHOOL PRIOR TO THE SCHEDULED BUS DEPARTURE TIME WHICH IS 10 MINUTES AFTER DISMISSAL. THE FIRST WEEK OF SCHOOL THIS YEAR WE SAW SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCED OTP COMPARED TO LAST YEAR WITH ONLY 47% OF MORNING BUSSES AND 62% OF AFTERNOON BUSSES ARRIVING ON TIME OVER THE FIRST TWO DAYS OF THE YEAR. THIS COMPARES TO 73% IN THE MORNING AND 79% IN THE AFTERNOON ON THE FIRST TWO DAYS LAST YEAR. EVERY LATE BUS MEANS STUDENTS ARE MISSING TIME IN THE CLASSROOM OR GETTING HOME TOO LATE AT THE END OF THE DAY AND MISSING TIME FOR AFTER SCHOOL ACTIVITIES. AND AS SCHOOL COMMITTEE CHAIR ROBINSON OFTEN SAYS EVEN AT THE 95% BENCHMARK THAT WOULD STILL MEAN OVER 1000 STUDENTS GETTING HOME LATE EVERY SINGLE DAY OR GETTING TO SCHOOL OR HOME LATE EACH DAY. SO WE CAN'T STOP THERE. WE NEED TO GET TO 100% AND ALTHOUGH IT WAS NOT NEARLY FAST ENOUGH AND WE'RE NOT YET WHERE WE NEED TO BE, WE HAVE MADE IMPROVEMENTS EACH WEEK SINCE THE START OF THE YEAR. BY THE END OF SEPTEMBER OUR MORNING ON TIME PERFORMANCE WAS ON PAR WITH THE SAME WEEK LAST SCHOOL YEAR AND FOR THE MONTH OF OCTOBER.  OUR MORNING ON TIME PERFORMANCE WAS TWO PERCENTAGE POINTS BETTER THAN OCTOBER LAST YEAR SO IT WAS 90% IN OCTOBER THIS YEAR VERSUS 88 LAST OCTOBER . AND IN RECENT WEEKS WE'VE BEEN AT 92% IN THE AFTERNOON THE GAINS HAVE BEEN SLOWER. IT WAS ONLY LAST WEEK THAT WE GOT AFTERNOON ON TIME PERFORMANCE TO PAR WITH WHERE IT WAS AT THE SAME TIME LAST SCHOOL YEAR.  BUT WE DO WE HAVE BEEN AND WE DO CONTINUE TO SEE STEADY IMPROVEMENTS EACH WEEK IN THE AFTERNOON.  SO ON THIS SLIDE I WANT TO SHARE BOTH SOME OF THE LEARNINGS THAT WE HAD FROM THE START OF THE SCHOOL YEAR AS WELL AS DISCUSS OUR ONGOING FOCUS AREAS FOR CONTINUOUS OTP IMPROVEMENTS.  THERE WERE A FEW MAJOR FACTORS WHICH IMPACTED THE START OF THIS SCHOOL YEAR.  FIRST A SIGNIFICANT ADJUSTMENT PERIOD ASSOCIATED WITH THE ROLLOUT OF THE NEW TECHNOLOGIES AS DRIVERS, FAMILIES AND SCHOOLS USED IT FOR THE FIRST TIME IN REAL WORLD CONDITIONS AND AS OUR TEAM LEARNED AND MADE IMPROVEMENTS TO MEET THE NEEDS OF OUR OPERATION.  SECOND, WE SAW A SIGNIFICANT NUMBER OF STUDENT LEVEL CHANGES THAT REQUIRED BUS ROUTE CHANGES IN AUGUST AND SEPTEMBER. MORE THAN TWO THIRDS OF ROUTES HAD A CHANGE FROM WHEN ROUTES LOCKED IN AUGUST FOR THE DRIVERS BID TO THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL. THIS WAS MORE THAN DOUBLE THE NUMBER OF CHANGES LAST YEAR AND IT MEANT THAT THE VAST MAJORITY OF DRIVERS WERE DRIVING A NEW ROUTE ON THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL DIFFERENT FROM WHAT THEY BID ON AND DIFFERENT FROM WHAT THEY DID FOR THEIR DRY RUN. AND FINALLY WE'VE SEEN SOME SIGNIFICANT CHANGES TO BOSTON. TRAFFIC PATTERNS EXACERBATED BY THE TEMPORARY SHUTDOWNS OF PART OF THE RED LINE IN SEPTEMBER AND PART OF THE ORANGE LINE IN OCTOBER . AGAIN, I KNOW HOW HARD THE START OF THIS SCHOOL YEAR WAS FOR MANY STUDENTS AND FAMILIES WITH TRANSPORTATION AND ALTHOUGH I WHOLEHEARTEDLY BELIEVE THAT THE TRANSITION TO ZOOM WAS AND IS A NECESSARY ONE AND THAT IT WILL HELP US BUILD A SUSTAINABLE AND EFFECTIVE SYSTEM IN BOSTON FOR THE LONG TERM. STUDENTS DESERVED BETTER THAN THAT THAN WHAT THEY RECEIVED AT THE START OF THIS SCHOOL YEAR AND FOR THAT I TAKE ACCOUNTABILITY AND I APOLOGIZE. AS WE LOOK FORWARD, OUR TEAM IS LASER FOCUSED ON CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT.  OUR GOAL ISN'T JUST TO BE WHERE WE WERE IN PAST YEARS BUT TO BE BETTER.  WE'VE ALREADY BEEN ABLE THIS FALL TO PUSH BEYOND THE PLATEAU WE HIT LAST YEAR IN THE MORNINGS AND WE FULLY EXPECT TO SEE CONTINUED IMPROVEMENT TO DO THE SAME IN THE AFTERNOONS. THE ZOOM SYSTEM HAS BEEN ONE SIGNIFICANT FACTOR IN THAT WORK PROVIDING US WITH NEWLY AVAILABLE DATA AND CAPABILITIES THAT WE HAVEN'T PREVIOUSLY HAD. ZOOM ALLOWS US TO USE ACTUAL TRAVEL TIMES TO REGULARLY UPDATE BUS SCHEDULES TO MORE ACCURATELY REFLECT CURRENT TRAFFIC PATTERNS. A FEEDBACK LOOP THAT DID NOT PREVIOUSLY EXIST THE RIDERSHIP TRACKING AND ZOOM IS ALLOWING US TO IDENTIFY ROUTES WITH LOW OR NO RIDERSHIP SO THAT WE CAN IMPROVE THE OVERALL EFFICIENCY OF OUR ROUTES. THE DETAILED RIDE INFORMATION AVAILABLE IN ZOOM HAS HELPED US TO IDENTIFY SOME CHALLENGE AREAS IN OUR OPERATION SUCH AS SCHOOLS THAT HAVE LONGER THAN AVERAGE BUS LOADING TIMES WHERE WE'RE NOW FOCUSING ON WORKING WITH THE SCHOOL AND CITY STAKEHOLDERS TO IMPROVE THE EFFICIENCY OF BUS DISMISSALS. AND ALTHOUGH IT'S NOT NOTED ON THE SLIDE BECAUSE COUNCILOR MURPHY MENTIONED THIS AS WELL ANOTHER EXAMPLE OF WHERE WE'RE WORKING TO BUILD OUT SOME ADDITIONAL CAPABILITIES IS BUILDING A REPORTING SYSTEM WHERE WE CAN SYSTEMATICALLY CAPTURE BUS DROPOFF TIMES SO THAT IN THE AFTERNOONS WE CAN MEASURE NOT JUST THE TIME THE BUS ARRIVES TO THE SCHOOL BUT THE TIME THE LENGTH OF THE RIDE AND THE TIME STUDENTS ARE ACTUALLY DROPPED OFF.  BEYOND ZOOM, WE'RE ALSO WORKING CLOSELY WITH OUR CITY PARTNERS TO IMPROVE BUS OPERATIONS SUCH AS WORK WITH THE STREETS CABINET AND BOSTON TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT TO HELP OUR BUSSES TRAVERSE THE CITY MORE EFFICIENTLY AND REALLY APPRECIATE THEIR PARTNERSHIP. WE'RE WORKING WITH TRANSDEV TO CONTINUE TO IMPROVE YARD OPERATIONS AND BUS MAINTENANCE TO HELP MAKE SURE WE CAN GET BUSSES OUT OF THE YARD ON TIME AND WE SAW 94% ON TIME PERFORMANCE FOR THE FIRST TRIP OF BOTH THE MORNING AND AFTERNOONS IN OCTOBER AND WE'RE NOW CONSISTENTLY SEEING 95% OR BETTER FOR THOSE TRIPS IN RECENT WEEKS AND WE'RE CONTINUING TO MAKE ROUTING ADJUSTMENTS TO ANY NEW OR CHANGE STUDENTS AND TO IMPROVE THE OVERALL ROAD EFFICIENCY WITH A PARTICULAR FOCUS ON THE TRIPS THAT ARE CONSISTENTLY RUNNING LATE. WITH THAT I WANT TO HAND IT OFF TO JACQUI HAYES, OUR DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF TRANSPORTATION TO REVIEW OUR STAFFING AND COVERAGE METRICS, OUR CUSTOMER SERVICE EFFORTS AND OUR ATHLETICS TRANSPORTATION. THANK YOU.  THANKS. AND MOVING FORWARD I'M GOING TO FOCUS ON OUR PERFORMANCE DURING THE FIRST MONTHS OF SCHOOL YEAR 2425. OF NOTE THIS IS THE FIRST SCHOOL YEAR SINCE BEFORE COVID THAT WE BEGAN THE SCHOOL YEAR FULLY STAFFED WITH BOTH DRIVERS AND MONITORS.  AND WHAT THAT MEANS ON THE GROUND IS THAT THERE WAS AN INCREASE OF 27 DRIVERS AT THE START OF THE SCHOOL YEAR FROM 717 TO 744 ACTIVE DRIVERS. HOWEVER, MORE IMPORTANTLY AND MORE IMPACTFUL WAS THE INCREASE IN THE NUMBER OF BUS MONITORS.  WE INCREASED STAFFING IN THAT AREA BY 68 MONITORS.  THAT BROUGHT OUR STAFFING NUMBERS FROM 691 TO 759 BUS MONITORS WHO WERE ABLE TO BE OUT ON THE ROADS WITH OUR STUDENTS SUPPORTING THEM. I WILL NOTE THAT WHILE WE DID HAVE A SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT IN STAFFING ACROSS THE SYSTEM, THERE WAS STILL A SLIGHT UPTICK IN UNCOVERED ROUTES.  THESE ROUTES WERE UNCOVERED DUE TO SOME MECHANICAL ISSUES IN THE BEGINNING OF THE SCHOOL YEAR THAT WE HAVE WORKED WITH TRANSDEV TO RESOLVE ON THE BUS SIDE SO TRACK CAN BE UNCOVERED FOR A VARIETY OF REASONS.  IT HAS HISTORICALLY OVER THE PAST FEW YEARS BEEN STAFFING WAS ONE OF OUR MAIN ISSUES AS YOU ARE ALL FAMILIAR AND THIS YEAR WHILE WE HAD ADDRESSED THAT THEN THERE WAS A ISSUE AROUND BUS MAINTENANCE THAT WE HAVE NOW RESOLVED. MOVING ON TO THE NEXT SIDE,  ANOTHER CRITICAL AREA OF STAFFING FOR US PARTICULARLY IN THE START OF THE SCHOOL YEAR IS IN OUR CUSTOMER SERVICE TEAM. THIS IS A GROUP OF 30 STAFF MEMBERS IN THE BEGINNING OF THE SCHOOL YEAR WHERE WE THAT FIELD INCOMING COMMUNICATIONS FROM OUR SCHOOL AND FROM OUR FAMILIES AND FROM COMMUNITY MEMBERS WHO NEED TO COMMUNICATE WITH OUR OFFICE. THIS TEAM WAS FULLY STAFFED WITH 30 MEMBERS AND THAT INCLUDED COVERAGE FOR OVER NINE DIFFERENT LANGUAGES AND I WILL NOTE THAT WE ARE ALWAYS LOOKING TO CONTINUE TO INCREASE OUR MULTILINGUAL CAPACITY AND CONTINUE TO PRIORITIZE HIRING IN FOR ALL OF THE LANGUAGES SO THAT WE CAN CONTINUE TO PROVIDE MULTILINGUAL SERVICES.  THIS SEPTEMBER WE FIELDED JUST UNDER 10,000 COMMUNICATIONS AND EITHER PHONE CALL OR TICKETING OR EMAIL FORM AND THEN WE SAW A TYPICAL DROP THAT THAT WAS AN INCREASE IN PAST YEARS OVERALL WHICH AS WE ARE ALL LEARNING TO USE ZOOM. THAT WAS ONE OF THE MAIN PLACES WHERE WE WERE ABLE TO COMMUNICATE ONE ON ONE WITH FAMILIES WHEN THEY WERE HAVING DIFFICULTY. USING THE APPS AND GETTING PEOPLE INTO THE APP LOGGED IN AND ABLE TO USE IT AND UNDERSTAND IT AND THEN ALSO FOR SCHOOLS AS THEY WERE LEARNING TO USE IT.  SO OUR CUSTOMER SERVICE TEAM WAS PROVIDING THAT SUPPORT AS WELL. AND THEN IN OCTOBER THAT DROPPED SIGNIFICANTLY WHICH IS CONSISTENT WITH PAST YEARS AS EVERYONE BEGINS TO BECOME FAMILIAR WITH THE ROUTES AND WE WERE ABLE TO IMPROVE THE ROUTES AND IN THIS CASE ALSO IMPROVE PEOPLE'S FAMILIARITY WITH THE ZOOM SYSTEM.  WE ARE VERY HAPPY TO SAY THAT APPROXIMATELY 12.6 THOUSAND PARENTS AND GUARDIANS REPRESENTING 16.5 THOUSAND STUDENTS HAVE BEEN USING THE ZOOM APP AND THEN THIS IS REALLY IMPORTANT TO US BECAUSE THE ZOOM APP UNLIKE THE WHERE'S MY SCHOOL BUS WEBSITE THAT WE HAD BEFORE THE ZOOM APP ALLOWS FAMILIES TO HAVE MORE REAL TIME UP INFORMATION THE GPS INFORMATION PINGS MULTIPLE TIMES A SECOND THE WHERE'S MY SCHOOL BUS APP INFORMATION WAS COMING IN EVERY COUPLE OF MINUTES SO THE ACCURACY OF THE GPS INFORMATION IS MUCH TIGHTER AND THE ZOOM SYSTEM THAN IT WAS BEFORE. ALSO THERE IS NOW THE OPTION FOR AUTOMATED RIDE DELAY NOTIFICATIONS GOING TO FAMILIES SO WE DON'T HAVE TO RELY ON PEOPLE AFFIRMATIVELY CALLING US AND TELLING US THAT SOMETHING'S LATE. THE APP CAN SEE THAT A BUS IS RUNNING BEHIND AND GET THOSE NOTIFICATIONS OUT TO FAMILIES SO THAT THEY CAN MAKE DECISIONS ABOUT HOW THEY WANT TO MANAGE THAT DELAY IN THEIR OWN FAMILY. AND THEN FINALLY IT ALERTS YOU WHEN YOUR STUDENT IS BEING PICKED UP OR DROPPED OFF WHICH AS A PARENT MYSELF GIVES ME A LEVEL OF CONFIDENCE THAT I KNOW WHERE MY CHILD IS THROUGHOUT THE DAY.  MOVING ON TO SLIDE TEN, I'M GOING TO TALK ABOUT ATHLETICS TRANSPORTATION BECAUSE IT IS SOMETHING THAT YOU WANT TO FOCUS ON AND I WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ADDRESSED IT FULLY AND I'M THANKFUL THAT MY COLLEAGUE AMY IS HERE WITH ME TODAY. YOU MEAN I DO WORK A LOT ON ATHLETICS TRIPS, ROTATION SO I WANT TO START ANSWERING SOME OF THE QUESTIONS AROUND THIS.  WE ARE DEEPLY COMMITTED TO ATHLETICS.  WE UNDERSTAND THAT ENSURING THAT ATHLETES HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO PARTICIPATE IN COMPETITION AND HAVING THE OPPORTUNITY TO GAIN THE SKILLS AND EXPERIENCES THAT COME FROM BEING ON A TEAM ARE DEEPLY IMPORTANT TO THEIR EDUCATIONAL EXPERIENCE AND THEN THEIR ABILITY TO PARTICIPATE FULLY IN EVERYTHING THAT COMES POST THEIR POST THEIR HIGH SCHOOL EXPERIENCE. SO WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY ARE GETTING TO THEIR GAMES AND WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY'RE ABLE TO COMPETE AND THEY ARRIVE READY TO GO AND THAT'S WHY THIS IS SUCH AN IMPORTANT PART OF OUR WORK. THIS FALL.  AS YOU KNOW, THERE WERE CHALLENGES IN NOT ONLY OUR ATHLETICS TRANSPORTATION BUT THOSE WERE IMPACTED BY OUR SCHOOL TRANSPORTATION CHALLENGES TO AND FROM HOME.  AND WITH THAT WE DID SEE A SLIGHT INCREASE IN UNCOVERED ATHLETICS TRIPS AS THIS WAS HAPPENING WE IMMEDIATELY WERE CONTINUING TO WORK ON ESTABLISH PARTNERSHIPS WITH OUR ATHLETICS DEPARTMENT TO FIND WAYS TO IMPROVE THAT SITUATION.  ON ANY GIVEN DAY WE HAVE CAPACITY FOR APPROXIMATELY 25 ATHLETICS AND FIELD TRIPS COMBINED. SO WHAT HAPPENS IS WHEN THAT NUMBER OF SCHEDULED TRIPS EXCEEDS 25 IS WHEN WE START REALLY HAVING TROUBLE WITH COVERAGE.  SO WITH THAT THE FIRST THE OBVIOUS FIRST SOLUTION IS WORKING WITH ATHLETICS TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO WORK THE SCHEDULES SO THAT THEY FIT INTO AVAILABLE FIELD TIMES THEY FIT INTO AVAILABLE THE AMOUNT OF TIME IT TAKES TO GET TO FIELDS AND THEN BEING REALLY THOUGHTFUL ABOUT MEETING EVERY DAY AND SPEAKING THROUGHOUT THE DAY BOTH BEFORE AND AFTER AND IN THE MIDDLE OF IT TO HELP MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE BEING REALLY CREATIVE IN HOW WE GET THROUGH EACH DAY AND MAKE SURE THAT WE GET AS MUCH COVERED AND EVERYTHING COVERED AS THE GOAL EVERY SINGLE DAY. THE NEXT THING WE READ REDUCING SCHEDULING CONFLICTS IS A CRITICAL PART AND THAT IS NO EASY TASK FOR THE ATHLETICS DEPARTMENT AND WE KNOW THAT BECAUSE OF THE NUMBER OF THE NUMBER OF GAMES THAT THEY NEED TO WORK THROUGH AND THE LIMITED FIELD SPACE THEY HAVE TO HAVE THOSE GAMES TAKE PLACE. SO WE ARE VERY THANKFUL FOR THEIR PARTNERSHIP IN THAT.  THE NEXT THING THAT WE DID IS AS WE SAW THE UPTICK IN THE UNCOVERED ROUTES IS WE BEGAN PILOTING AN INCREASED USE OF THE METER THAT HELPED US MOVE TRIPS THAT FIT INSIDE THE CITY UNDER THAT FIT WITHIN CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES ONTO MBT TRANSPORTATION SO THAT WE COULD PRIORITIZE TRANSPORTATION FOR GAMES THAT COULD NOT BE SERVICED BY THE NBA GAMES THAT WERE OUT OF THE CITY, GAMES WHERE THERE WAS A LOT OF EQUIPMENT THAT WENT WITH THE SPORT SO THAT WE COULD MAKE SURE THAT THE BUSSES WE HAD WERE USED FOR THOSE GAMES. THAT IS A PILOT THAT WE'RE SEEING THE IMPACT OF AND WE'RE GOING TO CONTINUE EXPLORING THAT OPTION.  FINALLY WE ARE IN THE PROCESS OF MOVING ATHLETICS TRANSPORTATION INTO THE ZOOM APP THAT'S GOING TO BE A SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT TO THE SITUATION NOW ONCE WE MOVE IT INTO THE ZOOM APP, BOTH COACHES ALL OF US WILL HAVE TRANSPARENCY INTO WHERE BUSSES ARE SO WE DON'T HAVE THE SITUATION OF THE BUS BEING JUST OUT JUST AROUND THE CORNER WHERE THE TEAM CAN'T SEE IT AT A FIELD THAT MAYBE THE DRIVER ISN'T FAMILIAR WITH AND HELP MAKE IT EASIER TO MAKE SURE THOSE CONNECTIONS ARE HAPPENING SO THAT WE DON'T LOSE THOSE OPPORTUNITIES WHEN THE BUSSES ARE THERE TO MAKE SURE OUR ATHLETES ARE AT THE BUSSES. SO WE'RE REALLY LOOKING FORWARD TO THAT BEING FINALIZED. THANK YOU.  AND WITH THAT THAT CONCLUDES OUR PRESENTATION AND WE WILL OPEN IT UP AND WELCOME YOUR QUESTIONS AND FEEDBACK. THANK YOU.  GREAT. THANK YOU SO MUCH. REALLY APPRECIATE THE PRESENTATION.  I'M READY TO MOVE FORWARD WITH OUR QUESTIONS. I'M GOING TO START WITH LEAD SPONSORS AND THEN GO OVER WITH THE COUNSELORS WHO IN ORDER OF ARRIVAL I DO WANT TO. THERE'S A LOT OF US HERE SO I DO WANT TO BE MINDFUL YOU KNOW, I'M GOING TO ALLOW THE LEAD SPONSORS TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY ARE THEIR QUESTIONS AND THEN WE'RE GOING TO GO 5 MINUTES PER COUNSELOR AFTER THAT. SO I JUST WANT TO REMIND MY COLLEAGUES TO BE MINDFUL THAT WE HAVE MULTIPLE WE HAVE MANY COUNSELORS HERE WITH THAT OUR COUNSELOR FRIEND YOU HAVE THE FLOOR.  THANK YOU, MR CHAIR. JUST TO BE CLEAR THERE NO ONE HERE FROM THE CAN SPEAK ON STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES. SO IT'S THAT RIGHT FROM THE PANEL?  YES, THAT'S CORRECT. THERE'S THERE'S NO ONE HERE FROM ACADEMICS RIGHT NOW TO SPEAK ON ANY OF THE STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES.  I WILL BRING THE INFORMATION BACK TO THEM AND WE'RE SORRY FOR THE MISUNDERSTANDING . OKAY. A LOT OF MY QUESTIONS WERE ABOUT STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES GETTING PICKED UP AT THEIR HOUSE AND IN MATTAPAN. HOW DO THEY GET FROM THEIR HOUSE TO MATTAPAN ON TIME TO THE CAR TO SCHOOL OR TO ANOTHER SCHOOL? JOSIAH QUINCY IN THEIR WHEELCHAIR.  WHAT THE BUS MONITOR AND WHAT SUBJECTS WOULD THAT STUDENT BE MISSING THAT AT THE CARTER SCHOOL OR OR AT ANOTHER SCHOOL AND THEN HOW DOES THAT STUDENT GET PICKED UP FROM FROM THE CAR SCHOOL AND AND THEN DROPPED OFF AGAIN OVER IN MATTAPAN SO I WANT TO KNOW.  MY QUESTIONS REALLY ARE ABOUT WHAT WHAT IS THIS STUDENT MISSING?  WHAT SUBJECTS IS THIS SORT OF MISSING? IS HE OR SHE MISSING?  PHYSICAL THERAPY SPEECH THERAPY . THE LATEST CARPOOLS STILL HAVE A THERAPEUTIC SWIMMING POOL TO HELP THE STUDENTS BUT MISSING ONE CLASS FOR A STUDENT WITH DISABILITY THAT'S THAT'S A MAJOR PROBLEM. THAT'S A MAJOR ISSUE.  THESE STUDENTS NEED AND DESERVE PHYSICAL THERAPY.  THEY NEED AND DESERVE. SPEECH THERAPY, COMMUNICATION THERAPY.  INTERACTING WITH THEIR FELLOW STUDENTS AND TEACHERS.  THOSE THOSE ARE SOME OF THE QUESTIONS I WANT TO FOCUS ON. IF WE CAN'T ADVOCATE FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES THEN WE SHOULD ALL GET OUT OF OUT OF OUT OF POLITICS, OUT OF ELECTIVE OFFICE.  SO I JUST CAN'T I JUST CAN'T ACCEPT THAT THERE'S NO ONE HERE FROM FROM THAT TEAM AND AND THINK THAT'S OKAY.  BUT I GUESS THERE'S NO CHOICE RIGHT IF THERE'S NO ONE HERE THEN THERE'S NO ONE HERE. YEAH, IF I MAY COUNSELOR OBVIOUSLY I HAD YOU KNOW, AS BRIAN SAID, WE APOLOGIZE FOR THE MISUNDERSTANDING AND OBVIOUSLY I CAN'T SPEAK TO YOU KNOW, WHAT STUDENTS ARE MISSING IN THE CLASSROOM BUT I DEEPLY UNDERSTAND THAT ANY TIME THAT'S MISSED IN THE CLASSROOM IS INCREDIBLY IMPACTFUL FOR STUDENTS AND PARTICULARLY FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES WHO WHO NEED THESE SERVICES AND RELY ON THESE SERVICES. AND WHAT I CAN SAY IS, YOU KNOW, WHILE OBVIOUSLY WE ARE WORKING TO MAKE SURE THAT EVERY SINGLE STUDENT IS PICKED UP AND DROPPED OFF ON TIME WHENEVER YOU KNOW, PARTICULARLY OUR OUR STUDENTS IN WHEELCHAIRS, OUR STUDENTS WITH YOU KNOW, WITH SEVERE SPECIAL NEEDS WHENEVER BUSSES ARE RUNNING LATE OR EXPERIENCING ANY ISSUES, THAT'S AN AREA WHERE IMMEDIATELY PRIORITIZE TO ADDRESS THAT.  WHAT'S THE PERCENTAGE OF STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES ARRIVING LATE AT THE COTTAGE SCHOOL? IF YOU GIVE ME A FEW MINUTES I CAN GET THE ANSWER TO THAT QUESTION. I DON'T I DON'T I DON'T MEAN TO BE ONE. I MEAN WHILE YOU CONTINUE OKAY, I CAN TELL THAT WHAT'S THE WHAT'S THE TRANSPORTATION BUDGET? IT'S ABOUT $173 MILLION PER FISCAL YEAR 25. OKAY.  I'M STILL I STILL WANT TO GO BACK TO STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES. I JUST CAN'T IGNORE THAT THIS IS MY OPPORTUNITY TO ASK QUESTIONS ABOUT IT.  I HAVE A I HAVE A NEPHEW WITH THAT HAS LIMITED ABILITY TO WALK AND DOES NOT SPEAK AT ALL, DOESN'T LIVE IN THE CITY BUT THAT'S THAT'S THAT'S IRRELEVANT. MY JOB IS TO ADVOCATE FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES ACROSS ACROSS THE CITY OR IN MY DISTRICT. SO AND I KNOW NO ONE'S HAD TO ANSWER THE QUESTIONS BUT I WANT TO KNOW WHAT WHAT SUBJECTS THESE STUDENTS ARE MISSING WHEN THEY ARRIVE AT FIRST PERIOD AND IN WAY WHAT DID THEY MISS THE FIRST PERIOD? WAS IT SPEECH THERAPY?  WAS IT WAS A PHYSICAL THERAPY? WAS IT INTERACTING WITH THE SOCIAL WORKER TALKING SOMEONE TO IMPROVE THEIR SKILLS AND THEN WHAT IMPACT DOES THAT HAVE WHEN YOU DON'T HAVE THREE OUT OF SIX CLASSES OR YOU'RE LATE FOR YOUR CLASS OR OR YOU OR YOU MISSED YOUR FIRST AND SECOND PERIOD, WHAT IMPACT DOES THAT HAVE ON THE STUDENT? WHAT IMPACT DOES THAT HAVE ON THE STUDENTS PARENTS ALSO WELL GUARDIAN THEN THE STUDENT GOES BACK TO THEIR HOME IN MATTAPAN OR CHINATOWN OR SOUTH BOSTON OR EAST BOSTON AND THEN THE STUDENT IN MY OPINION DOESN'T HAVE THE NECESSARY SKILLS THAT THEY COULD ACQUIRE IF THEY WERE IN SCHOOL ALL DAY LONG AND IT'S MAKING IT MORE DIFFICULT OR CHALLENGING FOR THEIR PARENT IN MY OPINION OR GUARDIAN THAT'S WHY I'M FOCUSED ON THIS AND I DON'T I'M NOT ACCEPTING THAT THERE'S NO ONE HERE TO ANSWER MY QUESTION BUT I'M FRUSTRATED BECAUSE WE THOSE PARENTS DESERVE ANSWERS AND THOSE PARENTS RELY ON THESE CITY COUNCILORS ON MY LEFT TO MY RIGHT TO TO ASK DIFFICULT QUESTIONS AND I'M NOT HERE TO ASK EASY QUESTIONS OR SOFTBALL QUESTIONS.  THAT'S THAT'S SOMEONE ELSE'S JOB. BUT I'M NOT I'M NOT GOING TO ASK ANY MORE QUESTIONS TO THE TEST OF YEAH. JUST TO KEEP THE TIME GOING. THANK YOU, MR CHAIR.  THANK YOU. AND JUST TO FIRST, I DEEPLY UNDERSTAND YOUR FRUSTRATION AND REALLY APPRECIATE YOUR ADVOCACY ON BEHALF OF THOSE STUDENTS. I THINK IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT THE CHARTER SCHOOL RIGHT NOW HAS ABOUT 88% ON TIME PERFORMANCE OVERALL WHICH IS YOU KNOW ABOUT THE AVERAGE THAT WE'RE SEEING ACROSS THE OPERATION. YOU KNOW, COMPARING OVERALL MORNING AND AFTERNOON AND THEN OUR OUR WHEELCHAIR BUSSES ACROSS OUR SYSTEM RIGHT NOW HAVE A 94% MORNING ON TIME PERFORMANCE IN 91% AFTERNOON ON TIME PERFORMANCE THAT'S ACROSS OUR ENTIRE SYSTEM IN THAT OF THE FOUR BUS TYPES THAT WE HAVE ON THE ROAD THAT IS HIGHEST ON TIME PERFORMANCE BY BUS TYPE BUT OBVIOUSLY IT'S NOT WHERE IT NEEDS TO BE RIGHT. BUT THE ONLY PROBLEM WITH THAT IS IS THAT MEANS ONCE EVERY TWO WEEKS THE STUDENT IS LATE.  ONCE EVERY TWO WEEKS THE STUDENT'S IS LATE FOR HIS OR HER CLASS AND ONCE EVERY TWO WEEKS THEY'RE NOT GETTING SPEECH THERAPY, THEY'RE NOT GETTING PHYSICAL THERAPY, THEY'RE NOT INTERACTING WITH THEIR SOCIAL WORKER UNACCEPTABLE TECHNOLOGY.  THANK YOU, COUNSELOR FLYNN I'D LIKE TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT WE'VE BEEN JOINED BY COUNSELOR GRABBY SUPPORTER AND THEN ALSO BY COUNSELOR FERNANDEZ ANDERSON.  WE'LL MOVE ON TO THE SECOND LEAD SPONSOR HOUSE NUMBER FOUR. YOU HAVE THE FLOOR. THANK YOU. THANK FOR YOUR PRESENTATION. I'LL REPEAT WHAT I DID SAY CAZALE, WHO'S THE DIRECTOR OF SPECIAL ED WAS INCLUDED AND GOT AN INVITE FROM CENTRAL STAFF SO I'M NOT REALLY SURE WHERE THE COMMUNICATION BREAKDOWN WAS AND WHEN I SPOKE TO INTER-GOVERNMENTAL EARLIER THEY THOUGHT THAT THE PANELISTS THAT ARE HERE COULD ANSWER ALL OUR QUESTIONS AND I DID REMIND THEM THAT I KNOW COUNSELOR FLYNN SAID IT FOR ME ONE OF MY BIGGEST CONCERNS IS LOSS OF ACADEMICS. OKAY SO COULD HAVE SPOKEN DIRECTLY LIKE I SAID EARLIER TO LOSS OF SPECIAL ED SERVICES BUT ANYONE IN ACADEMICS TO BE HERE TO TALK ABOUT HOW WE MAKING UP WE'RE ONLY FEDERALLY REQUIRED TO MAKE UP COMPENSATORY SERVICES FOR STUDENTS ON IEPS WE ARE MORALLY OBLIGATED TO MAKE SURE NO STUDENT IN THE CITY OF BOSTON LOSES ANY ACADEMIC TIME SO HOPEFULLY WE CAN HAVE ANOTHER HEARING TO ASK THOSE QUESTIONS DIRECTLY.  BUT THANK YOU FOR YOUR PRESENTATION. IF WE COULD GO BACK TO THE PAGE PLEASE DAN WHERE IT SAYS THE OVERVIEW OF BP'S TRANSPORTATION SERVICES BECAUSE ONE THING I KNOW I HEAR A LOT IS LIKE THE SHIFT OF RESPONSE ABILITY OR WE HAVE A LOT OF DIFFERENT SCHOOLS, WE HAVE DIFFERENT START TIMES BUT WHERE THE BOX THAT SAYS NON BP'S OBLIGATIONS AND YOU HAVE THE BREAKDOWN AS 119 BP SCHOOLS WHICH ARE OBVIOUSLY STUDENTS WHO LIVE IN THE CITY OF BOSTON WHO ARE ENROLLED IN BP'S SCHOOLS AND THEN WE HAVE 25 CHARTER AND 16 PRIVATE PAROCHIAL SCHOOLS IN BOSTON NOW WE LOST TWO SO THOSE ARE FAMILIES WHO LIVE IN BOSTON WHO HAVE A RIGHT TO A SEAT IN BP'S. I'M FOR MANY DIFFERENT REASONS WHICH WE DON'T HAVE TO GET IN NOW ARE CHOOSING TO NOT SEND THEIR CHILD OR FORCED TO NOT SEND THEIR CHILD TO A SCHOOL BUT THE 75 STUDENTS WHICH YOU'RE INCLUDING IN NON BP'S OBLIGATIONS ARE SPECIAL ED OUT OF DISTRICT SCHOOL STUDENTS TO BE PLACED IN AN OUT OF DISTRICTS SCHOOL FOR A SPECIAL ED NEED IT'S ONLY ALLOWED WHEN THE PARENTS THE ADVOCATES, THE TEACHERS THE SCHOOL SYSTEM AGREES AND OFTENTIMES IT TAKES YEARS AND A LOT OF ADVOCACY ON THESE FAMILIES PART THAT BP CANNOT PROVIDE THE SPECIAL SERVICE THE CAROL SCHOOL AS AN EXAMPLE IF YOU CAN PROVE THAT THERE IS NO BP SCHOOL THAT IS GOING TO DELIVER THE SPECIAL ED SERVICES MY CHILD NEEDS, WE ARE FEDERALLY OBLIGATED TO SEND THAT CHILD TO A SCHOOL AND IN THIS CASE THERE ARE 75 SPECIAL ED OUT OF DISTRICT SCHOOLS THAT WE PLACE STUDENTS IN. SO I WOULD ARGUE THAT THAT NUMBER SHOULD ABSOLUTELY BE PART OF OUR BP'S OBLIGATED NUMBER WHICH WOULD BRING OUR 25% OF OUR STUDENTS 49% OUT OF SCHOOL. 88% OF THE STUDENTS WE BUS ARE 100% BP'S OBLIGATED STUDENTS.  AND I WOULD ARGUE I MEAN THE OTHERS YOU COULD ARGUE ARE JUST CITY OF BOSTON OBLIGATED BECAUSE THE FAMILIES PAY TAXES AND THEY'RE ONLY USING THE BUSSES THEY'RE NOT USING THE SCHOOL DAY. SO WHY WOULD YOU NOT PUT THOSE 75 SCHOOLS IN THE SAME CATEGORY AS BP US OBLIGATED STUDENT BUS ROUTES?  I THINK THAT'S A APPRECIATE THAT QUESTION. I THINK WAS NOT TRYING TO YOU KNOW MAKE ANY SUGGESTION YOU'RE NOT YOU PERSONALLY BP'S OR NOT BP'S IN THAT SENSE JUST REALLY WITH THIS JUST WANTED TO YOU KNOW GIVE A KIND OF CONTEXT AND BREAKDOWN OF ALL OF THE DIFFERENT STUDENTS AND TYPES OF SCHOOLS THAT WE SERVE. BUT YOU'RE ABSOLUTELY RIGHT THAT THOSE STUDENTS WHO ARE PLACED IN OUT OF DISTRICT SPECIAL ED SCHOOLS, YOU KNOW, STARTED IN BP'S AND YOU KNOW, BP'S HELPED DETERMINE THAT PLACEMENT. SO YES YOU'RE RIGHT. I GUESS IF WE LOOKED AT IT THAT WAY, IT WOULDN'T CHANGE MATTERS BECAUSE I OFTEN HEAR THE NARRATIVE THAT WELL, WE SO MANY OTHER SCHOOLS WE NEED TO DROP KIDS OFF TO LIKE WE CAN'T JUST FOCUS AND IF WE WERE ABLE TO ONLY FOCUS ON OUR 119 DPS SCHOOLS WE WOULD DO BETTER. AND SO I THINK IT'S KIND OF MISLEADING TO SAY THAT THOSE 75 OUT OF DISTRICT SCHOOLS AND ARE THOSE SCHOOLS ON THE ZOOM APP ALSO BECAUSE MANY OF THEM ARE I KNOW LIKE MY NEPHEW DOESN'T TAKE A BUS HE GETS A UBER DRIVES HIM FOR A LONG SO HOW MANY OF THE STUDENTS THAT GO OUT OF DISTRICT ARE NOT ACTUALLY PUT ON A SCHOOL BUS BECAUSE MANY OF THEM ARE SINGLE STUDENTS? YEAH SO ANY STUDENT ON A YELLOW BUS YOU KNOW ALL OF OUR BP'S YELLOW BUSSES ARE EQUIPPED WITH THE ZOOM APP AND ALL OF THOSE THOSE FAMILIES ARE ABLE TO ACCESS IT. YOU'RE RIGHT IN SOME CASES, YOU KNOW, SOME STUDENTS BASED ON THEIR INDIVIDUALIZED NEEDS A YELLOW BUS IS NOT THE NECESSARILY THE APPROPRIATE TRANSPORTATION METHOD.  THEY THINK ALL OF THESE STUDENTS, WHETHER OR NOT THEY GO TO BP OR NOT, THEY ARE OUR RESPONSIBILITY TO GET THEM TO AND FROM SCHOOL ON TIME. AND YOU KNOW, I CERTAINLY HOPE THAT IT IF IT HAS EVER COME OFF THAT WAY IN THE PAST IT IS CERTAINLY NOT MY INTENTION TO EVER SAY, YOU KNOW, PASS BLAME AND SAY IF ONLY THESE SCHOOLS WEREN'T PART OF OUR OPERATION, WE COULD WE COULD, YOU KNOW, GET KIDS TO SCHOOL ON TIME. ALL OF THIS IS OUR RESPONSIBILITY.  JACKIE I'M NOT SURE IF THERE WAS ANYTHING I MEAN I CAN JUST ADD TO THAT OPERATIONALLY FOR US WE HAVE NO LACK OF FLAHERTY THAT WE ARE HERE TO SERVE AS STUDENTS OF THE CITY OF BOSTON REGARDLESS OF THE SCHOOL THAT THEY ATTEND. WE HAVE MANY COLLEAGUES WHO HAVE WORKED IN NON BP SCHOOLS WHO HELP US COLLABORATE AND COMMUNICATE AND WORK WITH THOSE SCHOOLS INCLUDING MYSELF WHO HAVE WORKED AT CHARTER SCHOOLS IN THE PAST. WE ARE DEEPLY COMMITTED TO ALL OF THE STUDENTS OF CITY OF BOSTON AND THAT IS OUR FOCUS OPERATIONALLY.  IT DOESN'T MATTER IF YOU CALL FROM ANY TYPE OF SCHOOL THAT WE SERVICE EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THOSE SCHOOLS IS IMPORTANT TO US AND EVERY STUDENT EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THOSE SCHOOLS IS IMPORTANT TO US. THANK YOU.  OF THE SCHOOLS THAT ARE STILL BEING AFFECTED BY LATE ARRIVAL HOW MANY ARE THOSE ARE OUR TRANSFORMATION WHAT WE USED TO CALL TURNAROUND SCHOOLS AND WHAT IS THE CORRELATION?  THE BUSSES THAT ARE STILL ARRIVING LATE TO WHAT SCHOOLS ARE STILL ARRIVING LATE TO PROBABLY BEING YOU KNOW TO STUDENTS WHO ALREADY ARE AT SCHOOLS THAT ARE UNDERPERFORMING WHO ARE TRYING YOU KNOW, IT COULD BE MORNING TUTORING THAT THEY'RE MISSING ALL OF THE EXTRA SUPPORT WE PUT MILLIONS OF DOLLARS INTO OUR TRANSFORMATION SCHOOLS AND IS THERE A CORRELATION BETWEEN THE ROUTES THAT ARE STILL ARRIVING LATE AND CHRONIC ABSENTEEISM WHICH IS ALSO ANOTHER PLAGUE ON OUR SYSTEM? I THINK THOSE ARE THOSE ARE BOTH REALLY GOOD QUESTIONS THAT WE CAN TAKE BACK. I DON'T KNOW THAT I HAVE THAT ANSWER RIGHT NOW.  WHAT I WILL SAY IS WHERE WE ARE STILL SEEING DELAYS AND THIS IS CONSISTENT WITH PRIOR YEARS AS WELL IS IN THE SCHOOLS THAT ARE THE 830 TO 310 YOU KNOW APPROXIMATELY YOU KNOW, BELT SCHEDULES THOSE THAT IS THE BELL SCHEDULE WHERE WE HAVE THE GREATEST NUMBER OF SCHOOLS AND THE GREATEST NUMBER OF ROUTES. SO THERE'S THE LEAST BUFFER AND CAPACITY WITHIN THE OPERATION AND YOU KNOW, FOR AS LONG AS I'VE BEEN HERE THAT'S WHERE WE'VE ALWAYS SEEN THE LOWEST ON TIME PERFORMANCE IS THAT BRACKET OF SCHOOLS, YOU KNOW, WHICH IS UNFORTUNATE.  IT'S IT'S ONE WAY TO KEEP A SCHOOL UNDERPERFORMING IF WE'RE NOT GETTING THE STUDENTS THERE ON TIME AND THEN IF THEY'RE NOT ABLE TO GET ON A BUS TO PLAY SPORTS OR HOW MANY TIMES A YEAR CAN BUS DRIVERS BID ON A NEW ROUTE ROUTE IS IT STILL TRUE THAT TEN DAYS INTO THE SCHOOL YEAR THEY CAN BID OUT AND ALL THEIR OTHER TIMES THROUGHOUT THE SCHOOL YEAR THAT THEY'RE ALLOWED TO BID OUT ON A DIFFERENT ROUTE? NEW YORK KNOW THE DRIVERS HAVE THREE BIDS A YEAR THERE IS ONE BID FOR THE FALL WHICH IS FOR THE START OF THE SCHOOL YEAR. THERE'S SOMETHING WE CALL A CLEAN UP BID OR FALL BID THAT HAPPENS AT SOME POINT DURING THE FALL THAT'S ACTUALLY COMING UP THIS WEEKEND AND THEN THAT THAT GOES ON TUESDAY.  THERE WILL BE NEW BUS DRIVERS ON ROUTES.  OH HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE FOR THEM TO BE ASSIGNED TO IT? THERE'S THERE IS A THERE'S A GAP OF TIME IN BETWEEN WHEN THE DRIVERS SELECT THE NEW ROUTE SO THAT THEY HAVE TIME TO PRACTICE THEM AND THEN WE WOULD SEE THE FIRST NEW DRIVERS ON THE 18TH WE WILL WE HAVE A COMMUNICATION PROTOCOL THAT WILL GO OUT TO SCHOOLS AND FAMILIES FOR ANY FAMILY WHO WILL SEE A DIFFERENT DRIVER.  THEN THERE IS A THE ON THE OTHER BID THAT TAKES PLACE DURING THE YEARS FOR THE SUMMER AND THAT IS FOR WORK THAT TAKES PLACE DURING THE SUMMER INCLUDING THE BEGINNING OF THE CHARTER SCHOOL CALENDAR FOR SCHOOLS THAT DO START PRIOR TO START AND THOSE ARE THE THREE CONTRACTUAL BIDS IN THE THE DRIVERS COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENT AND I GUESS AND I KNOW MY COLLEAGUES WILL ASK GOOD QUESTIONS SO I'LL PASS IT OFF TO THEM ALSO. BUT I'M HOPING AND IF IT DOESN'T COME OUT OF THIS MEETING WE CAN CONTINUE TO TALK, DAN, ABOUT WHAT'S CAUSING THESE DELAYS AND WHY YEAR AFTER YEAR LIKE WHAT IS IT WHAT'S THE WHAT'S THE PROBLEM? IT'S NOT THE RESOURCES. IT'S NOT THAT YOU IN YOUR HEART I KNOW WANT KIDS TO GET TO SCHOOL ON TIME.  SO WHAT WHAT'S WHAT'S CAUSING IT'S NOT THE YOU KNOW THE BUS DRIVERS A GRADE THE BUS MONITORS ARE SHOWING UP SO IT'S NOT STAFFING. I KNOW THAT FOR SPECIAL ED REASONS. IF YOU HAVE A 1 TO 1 YOU CAN'T GET ON THE BUS. SO THAT WOULD ALWAYS CAUSE DELAYS IF WE DIDN'T HAVE THE MONITORS AVAILABLE.  YEAH, I MEAN I THINK THAT'S A CONVERSE.  WE COULD TALK ABOUT THAT TOPIC ALONE FOR YOU KNOW FOR WEEKS.  I THINK CERTAINLY THERE ARE CONTINUED OPERATION IMPROVEMENTS AND TIGHTENING UP THAT WE CAN AND WILL CONTINUE DO WITHIN OUR OPERATION. I THINK THERE'S YOU KNOW AND THEN THERE ARE ALSO LONG STANDING STRUCTURAL CHALLENGES WITHIN THE CITY OF BOSTON THAT YOU KNOW, IMPACT TRANSPORTATION . RIGHT. THERE'S YOU KNOW THE FACT THAT STUDENTS IN BOSTON TRAVEL MUCH FARTHER TO SCHOOL THAN YOU KNOW, WE SEE IN COMPARABLE SCHOOL DISTRICTS THERE'S WE SEE A HIGHER PROPORTION OF STUDENTS WITH DOOR TO DOOR TRANSPORTATION AND BUS MONITORS WHICH YOU KNOW, LOOKING JUST AT THE IMPACT ON TRANSPORTATION MEANS, YOU KNOW, BUSSES NEEDING TO HAVE SMALLER BUSSES WITH WITH FEWER STUDENTS ON THEM THAT ARE ABLE TO GO DOWN SMALLER SIDES STREETS LEADING TO, YOU KNOW, MORE COMPLEX ROUTING AND KIND OF YOU KNOW, LESS CAPACITY OVERALL WITHIN THE SYSTEM CERTAINLY THAT YOU KNOW, THE BELL TIMES THAT WE TALK ABOUT THAT'S THAT'S ONE FACTOR THERE'S THERE'S SO MANY DIFFERENT STRUCTURAL FACTORS I THINK THOSE ARE SPUR WE SPEND $43 PER DAY PER STUDENT ON OUR BUSSES IT WOULD BE CHEAPER TO PUT THEM IN A NUMBER. I MEAN THERE'D BE MORE CARS ON THE ROAD WHICH WOULD BE A DIFFERENT ISSUE AND WE HAVE BUSTLING BUT BUT BUT I WILL STOP THERE AND LET MY COLLEAGUES ASK THE QUESTIONS. THANK YOU CHAIR THANK YOU, COUNCILOR MURPHY COUNCILOR RIGHT HERE YOU HAVE THE FLOOR AND BEFORE I BEGIN I'M JUST CURIOUS IF IT WOULD BE POSSIBLE OR AND I'M NOT SURE HOW THINGS MANIFEST BUT IT SEEMS LIKE IF THERE'S A WAY THIS IS FOR IDR. YOU KNOW SOME OF THE QUESTIONS THAT WE HEARD HERE IF WE CAN SEND IT OVER TO ACADEMICS AND IF YOU CAN GET AN ANSWER TO US WHILE WE'RE STILL IN THE HEARING THAT COULD SATISFY SOME OF THE COLLEAGUES THAT HAVE ASKED QUESTIONS FOR ACADEMICS AT THE VERY LEAST OR MAYBE HAVE THEM ZOOM IN.  I DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED BUT I'M JUST SAYING IF THERE'S A WAY FOR US TO PUT A BUTTON ON THAT THAT MIGHT BE HELPFUL. LET'S SHOW WHAT THAT WOULD LOOK LIKE. BUT EVEN IF IT'S SOME ANSWERS THAT'D BE GREAT.  YEAH. AND THEN ALSO IT'S ONE OF THEM I HAVEN'T STARTED YOUR ENTIRELY SO IF PEOPLE WANT TO ALSO TURN IN QUESTIONS TO THE CHAIR TO THE COMMITTEE I'LL HAPPILY SEND THOSE QUESTIONS OVER EVEN THOUGH THEY MAY NOT COME DURING THE HEARING THOSE WILL COME. SO YOU HAVE THE PHONE CALLS FROM ME . THANK YOU YOU FOR THAT. SO I GUESS ZOEY, LET'S TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THAT APP. HOW MUCH WAS IT?  I CAN PULL OUT THE EXACT NUMBERS BUT IT WAS APPROXIMATELY $1,000,000 IMPLEMENTATION COSTS IN YEAR ONE AND THEN A LITTLE UNDER $500,000 A YEAR GOING FORWARD. AND SO LET'S TALK ABOUT THE RETURN ON THOSE.  WHAT'S THAT LOOK LIKE?  SO I, I YOU KNOW, I THINK THAT YOU KNOW, HOPEFULLY WE COVERED THIS IN THE PRESENTATION A LITTLE BIT BUT THIS IS SOMETHING THAT WAS NECESSARY. WE COULD NOT CONTINUE TO OPERATE WITH A PAPER BASED SYSTEM. YOU KNOW, IN THE 21ST CENTURY WE NEEDED TO PUT THIS IN PLACE. I THINK THAT IT MODERNIZES AND STREAMLINES OUR OPERATION. IT IMPROVES STUDENT SAFETY AND IT GIVES US THE ABILITY IN A WAY THAT WE NEVER COULD BEFORE TO MOVE FROM A REACTIVE TO A PROACTIVE MINDSET.  IS IT PERFECT? NO, NOTHING'S PERFECT. WELL, WHAT I HEARD THAT THERE WAS YOU KNOW THAT DESPITE THE INVESTMENT THE WE ACTUALLY PERFORMED WORSE THIS YEAR IN TERMS OF ON TIME PERFORMANCE. SO I'M JUST CURIOUS IF THE GOAL WAS WITH THE APP WE WOULD GET BETTER.  THERE IS SOME QUESTION AS TO WHETHER OR NOT THE APP REALLY MET THE MOMENT AND I THINK THAT'S THERE WERE A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT FACTORS IMPACTING THE START OF THE SCHOOL YEAR. YOU KNOW I THINK AT THE END OF THE DAY I TAKE ACCOUNTABILITY FOR THAT. I THINK WHAT WE'VE SEEN IS YOU KNOW, THE INITIAL WHILE NOT PERFECT WE'VE MADE RAPID PROGRESS WE'VE FOR YOU KNOW SINCE THE SINCE THE END OF SEPTEMBER BEEN AT OR AHEAD OF WHERE WE WERE LAST YEAR IN THE MORNINGS THE THE AFTERNOON GAINS HAVE BEEN SLOWER. WE'RE NOW ON PAR WITH THE AFTERNOONS AND WHEN I THINK ABOUT WHERE WE WERE LAST YEAR THIS TIME THERE WASN'T A CLEAR PATH IN MY MIND TO SAY HOW DO WE CONTINUE TO MAKE IMPROVEMENTS THROUGHOUT THE SCHOOL YEAR WE WERE AT A PLATEAU WHEN I THINK ABOUT WHERE WE'RE AT RIGHT NOW WE HAVE ALL THIS EXCITING DATA AND CAPABILITIES TO SAY WE'RE GOING TO CONTINUE TO LOOK AT RIDERSHIP CHIP TO MAKE EFFICIENCY IMPROVEMENTS. WE'RE GOING TO USE THIS DATA TO IDENTIFY THE SCHOOLS THAT ARE TAKING A LONG TIME TO LOAD THEIR BUSSES AND HELP THEM TO IMPROVE LIKE WE HAVE ALL THIS CAPABILITY THAT WE DIDN'T HAVE BEFORE.  I THINK WHEN WE LOOK AHEAD TO NEXT YEAR I AM CONFIDENT BUT WE ABSOLUTELY NEED TO DO EVERYTHING WE CAN TO MAKE SURE THAT THE START OF SCHOOL NEXT YEAR DOESN'T LOOK ANYTHING LIKE IT WAS THIS YEAR. YEAH.  SO TELL ME A LITTLE BIT ABOUT WHEN YOU START ONBOARDING YOUR THE BUS DRIVERS WHEN DO THEY START DO THEY START RIGHT WHEN SCHOOL OPENS UP?  WAS THERE AMPLE TIME FOR TRAINING TO ACCLIMATE THEMSELVES WITH THE APP LIKE JUST KIND OF TALK TO ME ABOUT THE ROLLOUT THE STRUCTURE BECAUSE I'M ALWAYS I'M A PROBLEM SOLVER. I ALWAYS LIKE TO UNDERSTAND HOW WE END UP IN SITUATIONS.  SO I'M JUST CURIOUS ABOUT WHAT THE ROLLOUT LOOK LIKE FOR ME . SO I'LL JUMP IN THERE. THE ROLLOUT FOR ZOOM AS IT RELATES TO DRIVERS STARTED OVER A YEAR AGO.  IT STARTED WITH BEGINNING TO FAMILIARIZE OURSELVES WITH THE DRIVER SIDE OF THE APP AND HOW NOT JUST OURSELVES BUT ALSO TRANSIT TO UNDERSTANDING HOW THE DRIVER WOULD USE THE APP AND DOING TEST DRIVES AND TEST OPPORTUNITIES TO SEE THAT EXPERIENCE.  SO THEY ALL HAD OVER THE LAST YEAR EVERYONE WILL USE THE APP WAS FULLY TRAINED AND READY TO GO ON DAY ONE. IS THAT WHAT IS IT FAIR TO SAY? I'M I THINK THAT I'M NOT GOING TO GO THAT FAR BUT I WILL EXPLAIN WHAT THE OPPORTUNITIES FOR LEARNING LOOK LIKE. YEAH, THE OPPORTUNITIES ARE ONGOING BUT THE FIRST STEP WAS THE THE TRAINERS AND MANAGEMENT UNDERSTANDING THE SOFTWARE. THE NEXT STEP WAS PILOTING THAT WITH OUR DRIVERS OVER THE SUMMER SO IT WAS A SMALLER GROUP OF DRIVERS WHO BEGAN USING IT THIS SUMMER AND THAT GAVE AN OPPORTUNITY FOR FOR THOSE DRIVERS TO BE READY TO GO FOR THE START OF SCHOOL BUT ALSO IT MEANT THAT THERE WERE WE HAVE A CERTAIN NUMBER OF TRAINERS THOSE TRAINERS COULD GIVE REALLY TARGETED SUPPORT BECAUSE THERE WERE FEWER DRIVERS ON THE ROAD SO DRIVERS THIS SUMMER WERE ABLE TO BECOME VERY FAMILIAR WITH THE APP AND BE READY TO GO. THE NEXT GROUP OF DRIVERS IS ALL THE DRIVERS WHO CAME BACK FOR THE START OF THE FALL. THOSE DRIVERS CONTRACTUALLY COME BACK ONLY A COUPLE OF DAYS BEFORE THAT. THAT'S WHAT I THAT'S WHAT THAT'S WHAT I'M TRYING TO THAT'S THAT'S YOU KNOW YEAH IF YOU WANT ME THAT'S WHAT I'M TRYING TO GET AT RIGHT SO IN TERMS OF JUST THE TRAINING AND ONBOARDING AND JUST THE ROLL OUT THERE SEEMS IF WE'RE WE'RE IF WE'RE IF THE GOAL IS TO GET BETTER OR IF WE HAVE A GROWTH MINDSET HERE THAT IS AN AREA OF WHICH MAYBE LOOKING AT THE CONTRACT AND HAVING THEM ONBOARDED IT A LITTLE BIT SOONER SO THAT THOSE FOLKS WHO ARE COMING IN COULD HAVE A LITTLE BIT MORE TIME BECOMING INTIMATE WITH THE APP AND SO THAT WE'RE NOT HAVING THIS ISSUE AGAIN.  SO I'M JUST CURIOUS HAVE WE FIXED THE PROBLEM? ARE WE MOVING IN THAT DIRECTION FOR THE NEXT SCHOOL YEAR? YOU'RE ABSOLUTELY RIGHT. THERE IS SIGNIFICANT CHALLENGE IN THE BEGINNING OF THE SCHOOL YEAR WITH THE TIME OF WHEN THE DRIVERS COME BACK AND WHEN THE SCHOOL YEAR STARTS THAT GIVEN THE NUMBER OF CHANGES THAT THE SYSTEM IS REALLY SET UP FOR A TIME WHEN THERE WEREN'T AS MUCH MANY THINGS CHANGING AND NOW BECAUSE TRANSPORTATION IS MUCH MORE COMPLICATED THINGS DO CHANGE MUCH MORE SIGNIFICANTLY THAN THEY DID 15, 20, 25 YEARS AGO. BUT THIS CONTRACT IS THE RESULT OF A PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN THE VENDOR AND THE DRIVERS UNION AND THEN THE CITY OF BOSTON AND IN SCHOOLS AS CONSUMER OF THAT PARTNERSHIP THAT HAS DEVELOPED OVER MANY, MANY YEARS WORKING TOGETHER AND CHANGING IT IS A COLLABORATIVE PROCESS THAT TAKES TIME AND AT THIS THE TIME BETWEEN THOSE TWO THINGS IS SHORT. WHAT WAS OFFERED THIS YEAR THERE WAS AN OPPORTUNITY TO DEVELOP AN AGREEMENT WITH TRANSDEV THE VENDOR AND THE DRIVERS TO OFFER PAID TRAINING AND THAT PAID TRAINING WAS AVAILABLE. BUT YOU'RE RIGHT THE AMOUNT OF TIME THAT EVERYONE CAME BACK WAS VERY SHORT AND NOT EVERY DRIVER WAS AS FULLY TRAINED ON IT AS WE WOULD HAVE LIKED. WHAT ARE DOING TO ADDRESS THAT IS CONTINUING TO OFFER PAID TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES FOR DRIVERS AND ALSO GOING OUT OUR TRAINERS GOING OUT AND SPEAKING TO DRIVERS AND MEETING WITH DRIVERS WHO WE CAN SEE FROM THE DATA SIDE ARE NOT ABLE TO ENGAGE WITH THE APP IN THE WAY THAT WE NEED TO AND CONTINUING TO IMPROVE THAT REALLY IMPORTANT FOR MAKING THIS WORK FOR EVERYONE JUST REALLY QUICK BECAUSE I KNOW MY TIME IS RUNNING OUT. I DON'T KNOW IF IT IS OR NOT BUT I FEEL LIKE I'M CURIOUS AND I DO HAVE TWO MORE QUESTIONS SO I WANT TO JUST LIKE IF WE COULD JUST JOIN A SHOOT THEM OUT AND WE CAN YEAH CAUSE I'M TRYING TO BE EFFICIENT HERE. I'M CURIOUS YOU MENTIONED YOU BROKE DOWN THE NUMBERS OF OF STUDENTS THAT WE SERVE. I DIDN'T SEE ANY FOR THOSE STUDENTS WHO ARE HOMELESS AND YOU DO BUS YOUNG PEOPLE WHO HAVE BEEN DISPLACED BY OUR CITY SO WHAT'S UP WITH THOSE NUMBERS AND WHAT ARE WE DOING ABOUT THAT ONE? AND THEN TO THE ASK YOUR QUESTION. OKAY THEN THE OTHER QUESTION THAT I HAVE IS THE TRAINING FOR THE BUS DRIVERS. IS IT THE BUS DRIVERS THAT GET THE TRAINING FOR ZUNI AND IF SO ,IS IT DONE IN MULTIPLE LANGUAGES BECAUSE WE KNOW REGARDLESS OF WHETHER OR NOT,  YOU KNOW, PEOPLE LEARN BETTER IN THEIR NATIVE LANGUAGE AND I'M JUST CURIOUS ABOUT THE ACCESSIBILITY OF THAT TRAINING AND MAKING SURE THAT WE'RE ALSO CULTURALLY COMPETENT IN THAT SPACE.  AND THEN MY NEXT ROUND I HAVE SOME MORE QUESTIONS BEFORE THAT I SAW YOU GET THANKS COUNSELOR. SO I CAN TAKE THE FIRST ONE AND THEN I'LL DEFER THE SECOND TO JACKIE. SO I BELIEVE IN THAT AT LAST COUNT ABOUT 12 OR 13% OF STUDENTS RIGHT NOW ARE IDENTIFIED AS HOMELESS WHICH IS JUST A STAGGERING AND HEARTBREAKING NUMBER.  THOSE STUDENTS WHEN THEY'RE DISPLACED WITHIN THE CITY OF BOSTON, THEY ARE STILL ELIGIBLE FOR A YELLOW BUS NO MATTER WHERE THEY ARE EVEN IF IT'S NOT WITHIN THE TYPICAL ZONE SCHOOLS. WHAT I'M TRYING TO UNDERSTAND IS WHERE WE ARE WITH THOSE NUMBERS. YEAH, SO SO THERE IS YOU KNOW, ALL OF THOSE STUDENTS HAVE YOU KNOW, HAVE YELLOW BUS TRANSPORTATION AND HOW MANY YEAH SO IT'S ABOUT A 12 12% OF DPS STUDENTS I, I GUESS I, I CAN COME BACK TO YOU WILL HAVE TO LOOK INTO EXACTLY HOW MANY OF THOSE HAVE A YELLOW BUS VERSUS WHETHER THEY'RE YOU KNOW THEY'RE STILL NEAR THEIR SCHOOL OR HAVE A T PASS OR WHAT HAVE YOU AND THEN SO WE CAN COME BACK TO YOU WITH THAT NUMBER AND THEN STUDENTS WHO ARE DISPLACED OUTSIDE THE CITY ARE ELIGIBLE FOR A7D VAN TRANSPORTATION IS WHAT WE CALL IT THROUGH THE MCKINNEY VENTO ACT. AND RIGHT NOW I BELIEVE IT'S A LITTLE OVER 500 STUDENTS HAVE THOSE TYPES OF RIDES SET UP SO FAR THIS SCHOOL YEAR. HOW MUCH IS THAT COST WHICH IS YOU KNOW, THOSE THOSE RIDES THEY THEY VARY BUT YOU KNOW, ON AVERAGE IT'S SOMEWHERE AROUND 200 TO $300 A DAY A DAY, YOU KNOW, 40 TO $50000 A YEAR FOR THAT TRANSPORTATION.  AND THIS IS JUST FOR SOME CONTEXT THAT'S IT'S ABOUT 150 MORE OF THOSE RIDES RIGHT NOW THAN WE HAD AT THIS TIME LAST SCHOOL YEAR. YEAH, I THINK IT'S WELL, MY TIME IS UP SO I GOT ONE MORE QUESTION IN AND THEN I'LL WAIT FOR MY TURN FOR THE NEXT ROUND. SO THERE WAS OTHER QUESTION THAT I ASKED A STILL OUTSTANDING I CAN ANSWER THAT QUICKLY IF I COULD GO VERY QUICKLY. YOU KNOW THE DRIVERS DO YOU HAVE A TRAINING THE TRAINERS DO SPEAK THE LANGUAGE MANY OF THE LANGUAGES THAT OUR DRIVERS SPEAK SO THEY ARE ABLE TO ADDRESS THAT CULTURAL COMPETENCY AND PART OF THE TRAINING IN THOSE LANGUAGES. SO THE TRAINING IS A MULTI IS A MULTI LANGUAGE. YES, THAT'S GREAT. GREAT.  THANK YOU COUNSELOR MEJIA WE'RE NOT GOING TO MOVE FORWARD. THOSE WERE THE LEADS WHEN I WAS WORKING TO MOVE FORWARD WITH THE REST OF OUR COLLEAGUES IN ORDER OF ARRIVAL WE DO HAVE 5 MINUTES STARTING WITH COUNCIL PRESIDENT NUSRAT. YOU HAVE THE FLOOR. THANK YOU SO MUCH, MR CHAIR. AND THANK YOU TO THE ADMINISTRATION AND TO BP'S FOR BEING HERE. THANK YOU, DAN, FOR SITTING DOWN WITH ME AND FOR ANSWERING A LOT OF MY QUESTIONS. I WAS A STUDENT WHO WAS BUSSED WHEN I WAS IN MIDDLE SCHOOL AND ONWARD. I HEAR ABOUT THE LATE ARRIVAL ISSUES FROM MY SISTER. MY NIECE AND NEPHEW GOT DROPPED OFF AND YOU KNOW THAT REALLY CAUSES TROUBLES WITH THEIR SCHEDULE AND I KNOW THAT YOU ALL ARE WORKING ON FIXING THIS AND I KNOW THAT YOU WANT TO GET US TO 100% AND SO I WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT AND I ALSO WANT TO SAY THANK YOU TO THE BUS DRIVERS WHO ARE HERE.  THEIR PRESENCE LIKE YOU SAID, DAN, THEY ARE REALLY AT THE HEART OF THE ISSUE AND SOLVING THE PROBLEM. SO I WANT TO SAY THANK YOU. MS..  CHAMPION. I THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE WITH US BECAUSE YOU ALL ARE THE ONES WHO MAKE THIS WORK FOR OUR STUDENTS AND SO WE REALLY APPRECIATE YOUR PRESENCE HERE BECAUSE IT REALLY ADDS FULLNESS TO THE ISSUES THAT WE'RE DISCUSSING TODAY. I HAVE THREE QUESTIONS FOR THIS ROUND. MY FIRST QUESTION IS ON THE STRUCTURAL CHALLENGES, DAN, THAT YOU IDENTIFIED.  ONE OF THE ISSUES THAT I'VE HEARD FROM THE UNIONS FROM FAMILY MEMBERS WHO ARE BUS DRIVERS ARE THAT THE STRUCTURAL ISSUES IN PART HAVE TO DEAL WITH THE ZOOM OUT NOT KNOWING OR UNDERSTANDING BOSTON STREETS AND CAN YOU TALK A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT WHAT LIKE HOW THAT IS CAUSING DELAYS, WHETHER THAT'S BEING SENDING PEOPLE DOWN NARROW SENDING DRIVERS DOWN NARROW ROADS DAN STREETS AND THE DIFFICULTIES LIKE HOW THAT ADDS TO THE DELAYS THAT WE'RE SEEING AND WHAT WE'RE DOING TO SOLVE THAT PROBLEM. RIGHT. ZOOM NOT BEING NOT KNOWING BOSTON STREETS. YEAH, NO I REALLY APPRECIATE THAT QUESTION. I THINK WE ALL KNOW BOSTON TRAFFIC IS YOU KNOW IT'S EVERY STUDY THAT COMES OUT SAYS IT'S THE WORST IN THE COUNTRY, THE FOURTH WORST IN THE WORLD. WE HAVE TERRIBLE TRAFFIC AND VERY COMPLICATED TO SAY THE LEAST STREET LAYOUT MANY ONE WAYS NARROW STREETS, YOU KNOW ALL OF THAT.  I THINK WHAT WE HAVE FOUND, YOU KNOW, SO FAR THIS SCHOOL YEAR IS THE YEAH, SOMETIMES THE GPS YOU KNOW WORKS PERFECTLY AND SOMETIMES IT TELLS A BUS TO YOU KNOW, GO DOWN A STREET THAT THAT'S TOO NARROW OR TELLS IT TO TAKE A U-TURN AT A SPOT WHERE IT CAN'T OR ANOTHER ONE THAT I'VE HEARD IS BASED ON WHERE THE KID IS CROSSING THE STREET NOW THE ZOOM OUT WANTS TO OPEN THE BUS DOOR AS CLOSE TO THE STREET AS POSSIBLE SO WE'LL OFTEN SEND THE BUS ALL THE WAY AROUND JUST SO THAT THE DOOR OF THE BUS CAN OPEN ON THE SIDE OF THE STREET WHERE THE STUDENT IS RIGHT ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE OF THE STREET. RIGHT. SO YEAH, ALL OF THESE ARE CHALLENGES THAT THAT WE'VE SEEN AND THAT WE'RE WORKING THROUGH . I THINK REALLY ONE OF THE GREAT THINGS ABOUT ZOOM AS WE THINK ABOUT LONG TERM AND GOING FORWARD IS THE VERY YOU KNOW, THE FEEDBACK LOOPS THAT ARE BUILT IN WITHIN IT AND THE THE ZOOM TEAM WHO HAS BEEN A REALLY STRONG PARTNER IN THIS WORK. AND SO AS THESE CHALLENGES HAVE BEEN COMING UP, WE'VE BEEN WORKING WITH THEM AND YOU KNOW WITH OUR DRIVERS WHO REPORT THESE THINGS TO US WHEN WHEN THEY SEE THEM WHICH IS CRITICAL TO THIS AND WE HAVE YOU KNOW, WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO IMPLEMENT IMPROVED WHAT WE CALL STREET RESTRICTIONS WITHIN THE MAP IN THE ROUTING SO THAT YOU KNOW, IT HAS IMPROVED WHICH STREETS YOU KNOW FOR EACH STREET WHAT TYPE OF BUS IT WILL OR WON'T SEND DOWN THERE. THERE'S ALSO A BUILT IN FEEDBACK LOOP IN THE APP WHERE IF THE DRIVER DOES SOMETHING FOR THREE PLUS CONSECUTIVE DAYS THE APP IS NOW GOING TO LEARN AND SAY OH OKAY LIKE THIS THIS IS THE WAY THAT THIS SHOULD BE NAVIGATING AND IT'S GOING TO UPDATE THE NAVIGATION. YOU KNOW AGAIN IS IT PERFECT? NOTHING'S PERFECT BUT IT'S I THINK IT ALLOWS US TO IT ALLOWS US TO LEARN AND IMPROVE OVER TIME. OKAY, GREAT.  I'M GOING TO ASK MY TWO QUESTIONS MY NEXT TWO QUESTIONS TOGETHER. I'LL START WITH ANOTHER QUESTION ABOUT EFFICIENCIES.  ONE OF THE PROMISES AND WE'VE HAD A LOT OF CONVERSATIONS ABOUT THIS ABOUT THE ZOOM APP IS THERE ARE A LOT OF BUSSES ALLOCATED TO STUDENTS WHO AREN'T ACTUALLY GETTING THE BUS OR ARE ACTUALLY TAKING THE BUS. HAVE WE STARTED TO SEE EFFICIENCIES WITH THE APP MAYBE YOU KNOW, WE'RE DROPPING ROUTES STOPS FROM THE ROUTE AS A RESULT OF KNOWING OF THE APP. LOOK WHAT EFFICIENCIES ARE WE SEEING ON THAT? WHAT ARE THE CHALLENGES?  SOMETIMES YOU KNOW I'VE HEARD AND I HEARD THIS FROM THE BUS DRIVERS THAT PRINCIPALS HAVE DIFFERENT INCENTIVES FROM TRANSDEV BUT THE PRINCIPALS JUST WANT TO GET ALL THE STUDENTS ON THE BUS AS SOON AS POSSIBLE AND YOU KNOW, WE ON OUR END WANT TO BE ABLE TO ACCOUNT FOR WHO IS ACTUALLY GETTING ON THE BUS. SO THAT'S ONE QUESTION. AND THEN THE SECOND IS, DAN, YOU ALSO SPOKE TO FEEDBACK LOOPS AND WE'VE ALSO TALKED ABOUT THIS HOW DO WE DO A BETTER JOB OF FEEDBACK LOOPS THAT INCORPORATE THE DRIVERS NOT JUST IN A TECHNOLOGICAL SENSE BUT ALSO IN DISCUSS IN TO TO UNDERSTAND WHAT THEY'RE WHAT WHAT WHAT THEIR FEEDBACK IS AS THE PRINCIPAL USES OF THE APP.  AND SO THOSE ARE MY QUESTIONS ALSO YOU HAVE A REALLY GREAT MAP OF BEEPS IN YOUR OFFICE AND BRIAN I WOULD LIKE A COPY OF THAT MAP FORMALLY PUTTING IN MY REQUEST. THANK YOU. THOSE ARE THOSE ARE MY QUESTIONS. THANKS, COUNSELOR. SO FIRST TO THE YOU KNOW, THE RIDERSHIP DATA THAT YOU KNOW THAT TO ME ALLOWS US TO GET YOU KNOW, WORD FOR A LITTLE MORE THAN TWO MONTHS INTO THE SCHOOL YEAR RIGHT NOW WHERE WE'RE REALLY STARTING TO DOUBT YOU KNOW AT THE START OF THE YEAR WE WE WERE LEARNING IT WAS A NEW SYSTEM.  WE NOW HAVE A COUPLE OF MONTHS. WE'VE REALLY STARTED TO DIVE INTO THIS DATA.  WHAT WE FOUND IS THAT A LITTLE OVER 1300 STUDENTS SO YOU KNOW, 22,700 STUDENTS TOTALLY A LITTLE OVER 1300 OF THOSE STUDENTS HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED AS CONSISTENTLY NOT RIDING THE BUS. NOW THERE'S A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT REASONS FOR THIS. THIS IS NOT YOU KNOW, IT'S NOT ALWAYS THE CASE THAT THE STUDENT DOESN'T NEED THE BUS. SOMETIMES THE STUDENT NEEDS THE BUS AND THERE'S AN ISSUE MAYBE THE BUS IS RUNNING LATE EVERY DAY AND THE PARENT HAS JUST GIVEN UP ON IT.  SO WHAT WE'RE NOT GOING TO DO IS JUST SAY OKAY, YOU KNOW, REMOVE ALL THESE STUDENTS BUS ASSIGNMENTS. WHAT WE'RE DOING NOW IS DIVING IN ON TARGETING THESE STUDENTS AND DOING OUTREACH TO THE SCHOOLS TO WORK WITH THE SCHOOLS AND SAY HEY, HERE'S A LIST OF TEN STUDENTS AT YOUR SCHOOL WHO HAVE NEVER RIDDEN THE BUS. CAN YOU HELP US CONNECT WITH THESE FAMILIES AND UNDERSTAND WHAT'S GOING ON? AND IN SOME CASES, YOU KNOW, WE FOUND OH YEAH, THEY DON'T NEED THE BUS THIS YEAR YOU CAN PAUSE THE BUS ASSIGNMENT IN OTHER CASES WE'VE DISCOVERED OH, YOU KNOW, THERE'S SOME SORT OF ISSUE HERE. CAN YOU HELP FIX IT?  THE PARENT JUST HASN'T KNOWING WHERE TO REACH OUT OR THEY HAVEN'T REACHED OUT YET OR MAYBE THEY TRIED TO REACH OUT AND EVENTUALLY THEY GAVE UP. SO I THINK THAT DATA IS REALLY HELPING US TO BE BETTER AND WE'RE ALREADY STARTING TO SEE THE GAINS THERE. AND THEN YOUR NEXT QUESTION WAS ABOUT THE DRIVER FEEDBACK LOOP. I THINK I REALLY APPRECIATE THAT AND I REALLY APPRECIATE YOUR YOU KNOW, YOUR WORK WITH THAT GROUP AND YOUR ADVOCACY FOR FOR THE DRIVERS WHO VERY MUCH APPRECIATE ALL OF THEM. LIKE I SAID, IT'S AN INCREDIBLY HARD JOB AND WE YOU KNOW, WE COULDN'T DO IT WITHOUT THEM.  YOU KNOW, WE HAVE SOME BUILT IN SYSTEMS THAT HAVE PREEXISTED TO GET FEEDBACK FROM DRIVERS. YOU KNOW, WHENEVER A DRIVER HAS A IDENTIFIES ANY SORT OF CHALLENGE WITH THEIR ROUTE THEY CAN SUBMIT WHAT'S CALLED A ROUTE PROBLEM AND THAT GOES ONTO A LOG WITH OUR TEAM WHERE WE YOU KNOW, WE WORK TO ADDRESS THOSE. I THINK WE'VE GOTTEN A LITTLE OVER 300 OF THOSE THIS YEAR AND THAT HAS PROVIDED CRITICAL FEEDBACK THAT'S ALLOWED US TO GO BACK AND SAY OKAY THIS THIS NEEDS A CHANGE.  THIS NEEDS MORE TIME. THIS BUS CAN'T. IT DOESN'T NEED TO DO THIS LOOP TO PICK UP ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE STREET. ALL OF THOSE LITTLE THINGS THAT'S THAT'S CRITICAL FEEDBACK. BUT YOU'RE RIGHT. WE NEED TO CONTINUE TO THINK ABOUT HOW CAN WE, YOU KNOW, EXPAND AND IMPROVE THAT ENGAGEMENT AND THAT'S CERTAINLY SOMETHING THAT WE'LL CONTINUE TO DO IN PARTNERSHIP WITH TRANSIT HUB AND OUR BUS DRIVERS. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, COUNCIL PRESIDENT. MOVING FORWARD WITH COUNCIL PREPARED YOU HAVE THE FLOOR.  THANK YOU, MR CHAIR AND GOOD AFTERNOON EVERYONE.  THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR TRANSPORTATION FOR BEING HERE.  THIS IS AS YOU ALL KNOW, THIS IS ONE OF THE TOPICS THAT I STARTED TALKING ABOUT IN CITY COUNCIL . MY VERY FIRST COUNCIL MEETING SPEECH. BUT FIRST I WANT TO START OFF BY THANKING OUR SCHOOL BUS DRIVERS. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL THE WORK YOU DO. SERIOUSLY, I KNOW THAT YOU GUYS ARE THE BACKBONE OF TRANSPORTATION SO THANK YOU. AND TO THE BUS MONITORS. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE WORK YOU DO. IT'S SO GOOD TO SEE YOU AND BE ABLE TO CHAT WITH YOU. YOU KNOW, I'VE HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO VISIT TRANSPORTATION ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS AND TO SPEAK TO YOUR CALL TAKERS AND TO TRY TO GET A REAL INSIDE SCOOP OF WHAT'S HAPPENING. I'VE ALSO HAD A LOT OF CONVERSATION WITH BUS DRIVERS, A LOT OF THEM WHO LIVE IN MY DISTRICT TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHAT IS IT THAT'S GOING ON. SO I DO WANT TO SAY I THANK YOU FOR HIGHLIGHTING AND ACKNOWLEDGING THE CONCERNS THAT YOU HAVE IDENTIFIED THAT HAVE LED TO THE LOW PERCENTAGE THAT WE EXPERIENCED IN THE BEGINNING OF THE SCHOOL YEAR.  AND I KNOW THAT IT'S NOT AN EASY PROCESS TO USE A BRAND NEW APP FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 50 YEARS SO THAT WE USE BUSSES IN THE ENTIRE CITY OF BOSTON IS COURAGEOUS AND I KNOW THAT IT TAKES A WHILE TO GET IT BUT IT GETS TO GET USED TO IT. SO I'M GOING TO ASK MY QUESTIONS AND I'M GOING TO ASK SOME SLOWLY BUT I'M JUST GOING TO ASK ONE ROUND AND PUT IT ON THE TABLE.  SO ONE IS REGARDING ATHLETICS YOU SAID THAT THERE ARE ABOUT 17 OR 40 ACTIVE DRIVERS 728 TOTAL BUSSES BUT ONLY 640 OF THEM ARE ROUTED BUSSES. IS THERE A SPECIFIC FLEET OF BUSSES OR DEDICATED BUS DRIVERS THAT YOU CAN ASSIGN TO ONLY ATHLETICS? YOU ALSO SAID THAT 25 IF THERE ARE OVER 25 EVENTS ON A SINGLE DAY THAT LEAVES THAT'S FINE BUT IF THERE'S MORE OF THEM IT ADDS TO DELAYS AND POSSIBLE CONFLICTS. HOW OFTEN DOES THAT HAPPEN AND HOW CAN WE MAKE SURE THAT DOESN'T HAPPEN?  IS THERE COLLABORATION WITH SCHOOLS AND WITH THE PORTLAND BUILDING IN YOUR HOME? AND THEN I WANT TO KNOW WHAT'S THE PROCESS IF A PARENT DOESN'T KNOW WHERE THEIR CHILD IS?  I WANT TO KNOW WHO IS IT THAT THEY CALL? DO THEY CALL THE SCHOOL TO THE CALL THE TRANSPORTATION?  I SPOKE TO A MOTHER ACTUALLY ON ELECTION THERE WAS TWO DAYS AGO I WAS HAVING LUNCH AND WE I RAN INTO HER AND SHE SAID THAT HER DAUGHTER HAS BEEN LINKED TO SCHOOL 19 TIMES AND THOSE PARTIES HAVE MARKED WERE MARKED ON HER REPORT CARD. SHE WANTS TO KNOW IF THOSE ARE EXCUSED ABSENCES AND ARE THEY GOING TO IMPACT GRADUATION.  AND THEN I WANT TO KNOW OVERALL I LIKE TO LOOK AT LONG TERM PROJECTS TOO.  OBVIOUSLY THE FIRST YEAR AND THE FIRST TWO MONTHS OF ZOOM PROBABLY WASN'T THE BEST BUT I DO THINK THERE'S A LONG TERM INVESTMENT COMING OUT OF IT. DO YOU THINK THAT WHAT WE'VE LEARNED THIS YEAR IS GOING TO LEAD TO SOMETHING BETTER? WHAT ARE SOME POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS THAT WE CAN IMPLEMENT TO MAKE IT BETTER?  AND I'LL LET YOU HAVE IT FROM THERE.  THANK YOU SO MUCH, COUNCILOR . SO FOR THE FIRST TWO QUESTIONS ON ATHLETICS, I'LL I'LL HAND IT TO MY COLLEAGUES JACKIE AND AMY. SO I'LL START WITH ATHLETICS. OF THE 640 ROOTED DRIVERS THAN THERE ARE ADDITIONAL GROUP OF DRIVERS CALLED OUR STAND BY DRIVERS. ON ANY GIVEN DAY A DRIVER MAY NOT BE AT WORK JUST LIKE ALL OF US ALL OF US.  YOU MAY GET SICK. YOU MAY HAVE A FAMILY OBLIGATION. THERE ARE A LOT OF REASONS THAT PEOPLE HAVE OUTSIDE OF WORK THAT THEY CAN'T BE AT WORK ON A GIVEN DAY TO MAKE SURE THAT THERE IS A DRIVER AVAILABLE. THAT MEANS THERE IS A GROUP OF STANDBY DRIVERS SIMILAR TO LIKE A SUBSTITUTE TEACHER SO THEY CAN COME IN AND COVER THE WORK AND MAKE SURE THAT THAT CRITICAL WORK IS COVERED EACH DAY. AND THERE'S A GROUP OF STAND BY DRIVERS AT EACH YARD. THERE IS NOT A FLEET OF DRIVERS SPECIFICALLY FOR ATHLETICS.  ATHLETICS AGAIN IS PART OF THE COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENT AND THERE IS A PROCESS WHERE DRIVERS CAN BID ON THAT WORK BASED ON THEIR SENIORITY.  THAT TAKES PLACE A COUPLE OF DAYS IN ADVANCE. DRIVERS HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE THAT WORK IF IT FITS INTO THEIR SCHEDULE OF THEIR OTHER ROUTE AT WORK THEN THEY CAN ADD IT IN FOR WORK THAT IS NOT PICKED THROUGH THAT PROCESS. THAT REMAINING WORK GOES INTO WE HAVE A DAILY BIT IN THE MORNING AND A DAILY BID IN THE AFTERNOON AND THAT WORK CAN GO INTO THOSE PROCESSES FOR DRIVERS TO SELECT IT THEIR AND THEN THAT IS THAT GETS COVERED THROUGH THAT PROCESS.  SO THERE IS NOT A SEPARATE GROUP OF DRIVERS THAT JUST DOES ATHLETICS.  SO THAT IS THE THAT IS THE PROCESS FOR HOW IT IS COVERED . THANK YOU. THANK YOU COUNCILOR . I'LL ACTUALLY JUMP OFF AND PIGGYBACK OFF THAT OF MY COUNTERPART HERE SO BRIEFLY.  30 SECONDS. MY NAME IS AMY DANIELS. I'VE BEEN A AS ARE ACTUALLY BOSTON PUBLIC SCHOOLS FOR OVER 21 YEARS NOW AS A TEACHER COACH ,ATHLETIC COORDINATOR AND THEN I'VE HAD THE BLESSED OPPORTUNITY OF MOVING INTO ATHLETICS DEPARTMENT NOW I BELIEVE 11 YEARS AGO.  SO I HAVE SPENT A LOT OF TIME UNDERSTANDING WHAT THIS ATHLETIC PIECE IS. I WAS A TEACHER, I WAS A COACH. I WAS RIDING BUSSES, I WAS GETTING VANS, I WAS TAKING KIDS IN UBERS. I UNDERSTAND IT AND I ALSO SINCE TRANSITIONING INTO THE ATHLETICS DEPARTMENT I HAVE WORKED EXTENSIVELY WITH THE TRANSPORTATION DEPART DEPARTMENT. WHO CARES IMMENSELY ABOUT GETTING ALL OF OUR KIDS 100% ON TIME PERFORMANCE AND ANYTHING THAT THEY WANT TO DO OVER THIS TIME WE'VE HAD WE'VE REALLY KIND OF REELED IN OUR COACHES. THEY'VE HAD AUTONOMY AND TRYING TO SCHEDULE GAMES AND THEY'VE MADE SCHEDULES THAT WERE CONDUCIVE TO THEIR SCHEDULE IN A VERY NARROW LENS. THEY WERE NOT THINKING ABOUT THE CAPACITY AS THE DISTRICT ACROSS THE WHOLE AND AS A RESULT OF THAT WE'VE WE HAVE COLLABORATED, WE HAVE FOUGHT AND WE HAVE WORKED IT OUT. WE'VE HUGGED AND WE'VE TRIED AND WE'VE WE'VE COME TOGETHER TO THIS BEAUTIFUL COLLABORATION WHERE IT'S WE HAVE A MY MANAGER HAS BEEN ABLE TO WE HAVE AN IN-HOUSE SECURE SCHEDULER NOW WHO WE ARE NOW STARTING TO PRESCRIBE OUT WHAT THINGS NEED TO HAPPEN BASED OFF OF FIELD ACCESSIBILITY GAME MANAGEMENT SCHEDULES, NUMBERS OF GAMES ALLOWED ACCESSIBILITY TO KNOWING NOW ALL OF THE LOGISTICAL THINGS ACROSS THE DISTRICT AND IT'S ACTUALLY ALLOWED US TO DECREASE THE NUMBER OF TRANSPORTATION REQUESTS THAT WE HAVE ON ANY GIVEN DAY. IN ADDITION TO THAT I WOULD SAY THAT THAT WE'VE ALSO WORKED EXTENSIVELY WITH PROVIDING ACCURATE INFORMATION. ONE OF THE STRUCTURAL CHALLENGES THAT OUR BUS DRIVERS ALSO FACE IS IF YOU'RE PLAYING YOU KNOW ARCHBISHOP WILLIAMS, YOU'RE NOT GOING TO THE SCHOOL TO PLAY FOOTBALL, RIGHT? WHERE DO THEY PLAY? YOU CAN'T JUST PUT IN A SCHOOL AND THAT'S WHERE THEY'RE GOING AND SO YOU HAVE TO REALLY HAVE A TRUE UNDERSTANDING OF WHERE THE FIELD LOCATIONS ARE NOT ONLY FOR OUR BPC SCHOOLS BUT ALSO OUR SUBURBAN SCHOOLS AS WELL BECAUSE WE HAVE ONLY A FEW AMOUNT OF FACILITIES INTERNALLY WITHIN THE CITY BUT WE'RE ALSO YOU KNOW, IF THERE'S WEATHER RELATED ISSUES UNDERSTANDING YOUR FIELD, THE FIELDS THAT ARE TURF OR GRASS OR ETC. OR YOU KNOW WHAT IS THE SECONDARY PLACE THAT WE COULD GO TO SOME SCHOOLS THAT WE PLAY AGAINST YOU KNOW THEY DON'T HAVE A BASKETBALL COURT SO YOU'RE ENDING UP GOING THREE OR FOUR OR FIVE MILES DOWN THE ROAD BUT THAT'S NOT IN THE PAPERWORK, RIGHT? SO OUR DRIVERS ARE GIVEN A YOU KNOW, AN ITINERARY OF WHERE THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO GO AND SO THAT'S NOT ACCURATE. AND SO PEOPLE ARE TRYING TO CHANGE THINGS REAL TIME AND THAT CREATES A STRUCTURAL DELAY. SO WE'VE WORKED EXTENSIVELY TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE PROVIDING ACCURATE INFORMATION, ACCURATE LOCATIONS, ADDRESSES, ETC. ALSO MINIMIZING THE AMOUNT OF GAMES ON ANY GIVEN DAY ALSO BEING VERY SPORTS SPECIFIC ON CERTAIN DAYS.  SO THAT WAY WE'RE NOT TRYING TO LOAD UP OUR TEAMS THAT NEED THOSE BIG BUSSES ALL ON ONE DAY AND THEN LEAVING EVERYBODY ELSE TO KIND OF SCRAMBLE AROUND. SO WE'VE IDENTIFIED A LOT OF THOSE SORTS OF FACTORS TO BE ABLE TO HELP MITIGATE SOME OF THOSE CHALLENGES BUT ALSO HELP AS IN A TEAMWORK COLLABORATIVE EFFORT ACROSS THE DISTRICT FOR WITH SCHOOLS AND DISMISSAL TIMES WITH YOU KNOW, PRINCIPALS AND HEADMASTERS WITH TRANSPORTATION WITH TRANSDEV BUT IT IS TRULY, YOU KNOW, A A TRULY A TEAM TEAM EFFORT. I KNOW IT DOESN'T SEEM THAT WAY BUT IN MY 21 YEARS I PUT MY NAME ON THE FACT THAT THIS IS NEVER BEEN MORE OF A TEAM COLLABORATIVE EFFORT FROM THE FOLKS HERE AT THE PANEL HERE TODAY AND ALSO MYSELF AND THE MANY PEOPLE THAT ARE BEHIND US THAT ARE NOT CURRENTLY HERE TODAY.  SO THERE'S A LOT OF THAT WORK THAT'S GOING IN TO DECREASE THOSE NUMBERS JUST VERY QUICKLY . SO I WAS UP AT THE TIME WAS UP I KNOW HE HAD A FEW QUESTIONS. I JUST WANTED TO GET THEM ANSWERED AND THEN MOVE ON TO THE NEXT COUNSELOR.  THANKS COUNSELOR AND JUST THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE. SHE WE COULD NOT DO WITHOUT HER SO VERY QUICKLY YOU ASKED WHO SHOULD A PARENT CALL IF THEY'RE NOT SURE WHERE THEIR STUDENT IS OR ANYTHING ELSE ANYTHING WITH THE BUS CALL OUR TRANSPORTATION HOTLINE 6176359520. WE HAVE A TEAM OF 30 CUSTOMER SERVICE STAFF AND OPERATIONS STAFF WHO ARE THERE. THEY DO THIS WORK EVERY SINGLE DAY, EVERY SCENARIO YOU CAN IMAGINE. THEY HAVE SEEN IT BEFORE AND THEY JUST CAN'T SAY ENOUGH GOOD THINGS ABOUT THEM.  AND SO PARENTS PARENTS SHOULD CALL THEIR AND YOU KNOW, THEY'LL BE READY TO HELP THEM.  YOU TALKED ABOUT A STUDENT WHO'S BEEN CONSISTENTLY LATE ARRIVING IN THE MORNING SO I CAN'T SPEAK TO TWO NON SCHOOLS IN THEIR POLICIES BUT FOR STUDENTS ANY PARTIES OR ABSENCES DUE TO TRANSPORTATION ARE EXCUSED ABSENCES SO THEY WOULDN'T NEGATIVELY IMPACT A STUDENT AND THEN YOU KNOW CERTAINLY MAYBE I CAN WE CAN CONNECT AFTERWARDS BECAUSE I WANT TO MAKE SURE TO KNOW WHO THAT IS AND IT'S PROBABLY ALREADY ON OUR RADAR AS A ROUTE THAT NEEDS FIXING. BUT IF NOT THEN MAKE SURE TO CONNECT AND GET AN UPDATE TO THAT FAMILY. AND THEN LASTLY, USE LONG TERM ABOUT, YOU KNOW, SOME OF THE STRUCTURAL CHALLENGES AND WHAT CAN WE DO AND I THINK TALKED A LITTLE BIT ABOUT ZOOM AND HOW IT PROVIDES US SOME SOME NEW DATA AND CAPABILITIES AND I WON'T REHASH THAT BECAUSE I KNOW WE'RE WE'RE AT TIME BUT I THINK THAT WILL ALLOW US TO CONTINUE TO IMPROVE OUR INTERNAL OPERATIONAL EFFICIENCIES AND THEN YOU KNOW, I SPOKE A LITTLE BIT YOU KNOW, WHEN COUNCILOR LOUIJEUNE ASKED THERE ARE BROADER STRUCTURAL CHALLENGES WITHIN BOSTON AND WITHIN BP'S IMPACTING TRANSPORTATION. WE ARE JUST ONE COMPONENT OF A BROAD ECOSYSTEM FOR BOSTON SCHOOLS, BOSTON FAMILIES IN THE COMMUNITY AND WE NEED TO CONTINUE TO HAVE REAL HONEST AND HARD CONVERSATIONS AS A CITY AND A COMMUNITY ABOUT WHERE DO WE WANT TO GO WITH THE FUTURE OF , YOU KNOW, OUR SCHOOLS AND OUR TRANSPORTATION AND AND ALL OF THAT. SO I THINK, YOU KNOW, WE'RE COMMITTED TO CONTINUING THAT ENGAGEMENT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU.  I THINK IT COMES WITH PREPARED COUNCILOR . HOWEVER YOU HAVE THE FOUR AND 5 MINUTES. SURE. THANK YOU.  AND JUST FOLLOWING UP ON THAT, YOU KNOW, I DO THINK LIKE WE ARE WE'VE ALL GOTTEN CALLS, EMAILS FROM FROM PARENTS TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHAT'S GOING ON.  I DO THINK WPS COULD DO A BETTER JOB IN BEING THE YOU KNOW, IN AT LEAST BEING A SORT OF A RESOURCE FOR FOR PARENTS. AND SO, YOU KNOW, IN TERMS OF DO YOU HAVE ANY PLANS FOR HOW TO ADDRESS THIS IN THE FUTURE? I MEAN YOU JUST MENTIONED THE PHONE NUMBER BUT YOU KNOW, WHO SHOULD WE BE TELLING PARENTS TO REACH OUT TO? YEAH. YEAH. SO AGAIN, I WOULD YOU KNOW OUR TRANSPORTATION HOTLINE 6176359520. YOU CAN ALSO GO ON OUR WEBSITE . BOSTON PUBLIC SCHOOLS, SAUGUS TRANSPORTATION AND GET TO OUR SUPPORT PORTAL WHERE YOU CAN SUBMIT A TICKET I THINK YOU KNOW I THINK THE TEAM DOES INCREDIBLE WORK BUT I WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE AND YOU SAW THIS IN THE NUMBERS THAT WE WENT THROUGH ESPECIALLY IN SEPTEMBER THERE'S A HUGE VOLUME, HUGE INFLUX OF CALLS AND EMAILS AND TICKETS TO THIS TEAM AND OUR RESPONSE TIME IS NOT WHAT IT NEEDS TO BE, YOU KNOW, AND WE NEED TO CONTINUE TO BE BETTER AND PART OF THAT STRATEGY ONE PIECE OF THAT STRATEGY IS GETTING YOU KNOW, IS GETTING ZOOM IN THE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION THAT IT PROVIDES FAMILIES SO THAT THERE'S LESS OF A NEED TO CALL AS COUNCILOR MURPHY WAS SAYING EARLIER, YOU KNOW, WE IT SHOULD BE RARE THAT YOU NEED TO REACH OUT TO TRANSPORTATION TO FIND OUT WHAT'S GOING ON. AND SO WE WANT TO CONTINUE TO PROACTIVELY GIVE FAMILIES THE INFORMATION THAT THEY NEED SO THAT THEY ONLY NEED TO CALL IN AN EMERGENCY OR WHEN SOMETHING, YOU KNOW, ODD OR UNEXPECTED IS GOING ON. OKAY. AND THEN IN TERMS OF THE NUMBER OF LISTENING TO THE PRESENTATION IS DO WE NEED MORE BUSSES IS THAT I WOULD THAT HELP? IT SEEMS LIKE WE HAVE MORE DRIVERS THAN BUSSES.  WOULD THAT HELP NOT HELP DO WE HAVE THE RIGHT AMOUNT OF BUSSES I GUESS? DAN YEAH I CAN START AND THEN JACKIE MAY WANT TO ADD ON AS WELL. I THINK THAT CERTAINLY OF ALWAYS MORE RESOURCES YOU KNOW ANYONE WITH MORE RESOURCES YOU CAN DO MORE RIGHT? I THINK THAT YOU KNOW WE HAVE THE YOU KNOW WE OUR FLEET YOU KNOW IS THE SAME SIZE THAT IT HAS BEEN FOR MANY YEARS BUT OVER THE PAST FEW YEARS WE HAVE PURCHASED FEWER BUSSES EACH YEAR THAN WE USED TO BECAUSE AS WE'VE BEEN WORKING THROUGH THIS TRANSITION TO ELECTRIC SCHOOL BUSSES WHICH HAVE A HIGHER UPFRONT COST AND AS WE'VE BEEN WORKING TO FIGURE OUT LONG TERM FUNDING FOR THIS, YOU KNOW OUR REPLACEMENT RATE WENT DOWN FOR THE LAST FEW YEARS AND SO OUR OUR FLEET IS A LITTLE BIT OLDER RIGHT NOW THAN IT WAS IN PAST YEARS AND THERE'S SOME NEW CHALLENGES THAT WE'RE DEALING WITH AS A RESULT OF THAT. AND SO, YOU KNOW, WE WE JUST FINISHED ACTUALLY OR ARE WRAPPING UP I SHOULD SAY KIND OF A YEARLONG KIND OF STUDY AND RESEARCH PROJECT WITH YOU KNOW, WITH AN OUTSIDE NONPROFIT WHO'S HELPING US THINK ABOUT LONG TERM FLEET REPLACEMENT AND LONG TERM FLEET PLANNING BOTH, YOU KNOW, TO ADDRESS THIS CHALLENGE AND ALSO JUST AS THE THE MAKE UP OF STUDENTS WHO NEED TRANSPORTATION IS CHANGING, THAT MEANS, YOU KNOW, WE MAYBE NEED DIFFERENT BUSSES YOU KNOW ,LIKE RIGHT NOW WE HAVE PROBABLY A LITTLE BIT MORE OF THE BIG BUSSES, THE FULL SIZE BUSSES THAN WE NEED AS WE'VE SEEN A DECREASE IN THE NUMBER OF YOU KNOW, CORNER STOP OR GENERAL EDUCATION STUDENTS RIDING THE BUS AND COULD PROBABLY USE A SLIGHTLY HIGHER RATIO OF SOME OF THE SMALLER BUSSES THAT ARE MORE TYPICAL FOR DOOR TO DOOR STUDENTS. SO WE'RE WE'RE THINKING ABOUT ALL THESE CHALLENGES AND HOW DO WE YOU KNOW, TRANSITION OVER THE NEXT FEW YEARS. JACKIE I'M NOT SURE IF YOU WANT TO ADD ANYTHING.  YEAH. WHAT ELSE IS CHANGING THE COMPOSITION OF THE FLEET FROM A CERTAIN NUMBER OF BIG BUSSES TO A MEDIUM SIZED BUSSES AND SMALLER DOES TAKE TIME BECAUSE THE ASSETS DO STAY IN YOUR FLEET FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS BUT WE ARE WE ARE WORKING THROUGH THAT CHANGE OVER AND WE'RE ACTUALLY TRYING TO DO IT RELATIVELY RAPIDLY BETWEEN NOW AND 2030 AND THAT'S THE THAT'S THE CHANGEOVER PROCESS FOR US.  WHAT I WOULD SAY IS THAT ADDING BUSSES TO THE FLEET ALSO COMES WITH ADDING PARKING SPACES TO PARK THOSE BUSSES AND AND AT THIS POINT THE YARDS ARE AT CAPACITY SO ADDING MORE BUSSES TAKES HAVING PLACES TO PARK THEM PLACES THEN TO HAVE DISPATCH FACILITIES BATHROOM FACILITIES, BREAKROOM FACILITIES THERE ARE OTHER FACILITIES THAT COME THAT ARE NECESSITATED BY ADDING MORE BUSSES FOR ALL OF THE STAFF THAT THEN NEED TO BE THERE DRIVERS, MONITORS, OPERATIONS STAFF AND WHAT I WOULD SAY IS THAT WHILE WE ARE IN THIS PROCESS OF UNDERSTANDING AT A MUCH DEEPER LEVEL OUR RIDERSHIP AND HOW MANY HOW MANY BUSSES DO WE REALLY NEED THAT WE ARE TRYING TO UNDERSTAND THAT PICTURE AT THE SAME TIME LOOKING AT OUR PURCHASES EACH YEAR WE THERE ARE WE I THINK THERE'S A RELATIVELY COMMON QUESTION THAT COMES TO TRANSPORTATION OF ICE. HOW ARE ALL THE STUDENTS WHO ARE ROUTED TO THE BUSSES USING THE BUSSES AND WE BELIEVE THE ANSWER IS NO AND THAT WE NEED TO ANSWER THAT QUESTION AND FIND OUT HOW MANY STUDENTS REALLY ARE RIDING SO THAT WE CAN RIGHT SIZE OUR ROUTING AND THEN RIGHTSIZE OUR FLEET. BUT WE ARE MAKING THAT TRANSITION.  WE KNOW WE CAN'T WAIT. SO WE ARE ALSO BEGINNING TO MAKING SOME OF THE SMALLER SIZE BUSSES AND MARGINALLY EXPAND THE SIZE OF THE FLEET WITHIN THE FOOTPRINT WE HAVE AVAILABLE TO DAY TO ANSWER THE CALL OF NEEDING SOME SMALLER SIZED BUSSES. OKAY CHICKEN JUST ONE QUICK QUESTION JUST FOR ATHLETICS CAN I OFTEN HAD COACHES WHO DROVE ME IN A VAN TO YOU KNOW TRACK MEETS AND GAMES AND STUFF LIKE THAT. CAN WE PROVIDE COACHES WITH VANS IN BEEPS SO IF A BUS CAN'T MAKE IT THEY HAVE TO HAVE KIDS RUNNING FOR UBERS.  I BELIEVE THAT WITH THE DC WAY OF COMMUNITY CENTERS IF YOU HAVE A SCHOOL THAT'S ATTACHED TO THAT THERE ARE VANS THAT COULD BE POSSIBLE BUT MANY TIMES WERE IN THOSE PINCHES AND YOU HAVE TO RESERVE THOSE WITH SOME TIME LEFT IN TIME FOR THAT BUT IT WOULD BE AN OPTION BUT ALSO WOULD NEED TO BE DISCUSSED WITH THE COACHES AND HEADMASTERS AND THE FACILITY, THE COMMUNITY CENTERS MANAGERS AND THINGS LIKE THAT.  BUT IT IS AN OPTION. THERE'S A COUPLE WITH OUR YOUNGER OR YOUNGER GROUPS WE HAVE THE PLAY BALL FOUNDATION AND WE WORK WITH A TRANSPORTATION PROVIDER THAT IS 15 PASSENGER VANS AND IT'S COMPLETELY SUITABLE FOR YOU KNOW, 12 SIX OR SEVENTH GRADERS THAT WORKS THAT ACTUALLY DECREASES THE AMOUNT OF , YOU KNOW, TRANSPORTATION VOLUME FOR ATHLETICS FOR ALL OUR HIGH SCHOOL STUFF TOO. SO IT IS POSSIBLE AND I THINK IT'S DEFINITELY AN OPTION FOR SOMETHING TO EXPLORE. OKAY. I HAVE BRIAN BREATHING DOWN.  YEAH. SO THIS IS ACTUALLY SOMETHING THAT WE'VE BEEN REVIEWING IN THE DISTRICT RIGHT NOW WITH OUR VEHICLE POLICY AND GOING OVER SO WE CAN MAKE SURE TO GET BACK TO YOU ONCE WE'VE FIGURED NINE OUT ALL OF THOSE DETAILS AND HOW SUCCESSFUL OR NOT IT MIGHT BE IN GETTING STUDENTS TO ATHLETIC PERFORMANCES. THANK YOU, CHAIR THANK YOU, COUNSELOR WEBER COUNCILOR BRAYTON, YOU HAVE THE FLOOR.  THANK YOU. THANK YOU, MR CHAIR. AND THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR BEING HERE TO SEE THIS AFTERNOON.  FIRST OF ALL WE TALK ABOUT TRANSDEV HELP ME UNDERSTAND OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH TRANSDEV LIKE WE PAID FOR THE ZOO. WE OWN THE BUSSES, WE EMPLOY THE DRIVERS AND WHAT'S HER RELATION? WHO IS TRANSDEV LIKE WHAT'S OUR WHAT'S THEIR ROLE LIKE AND HOW MUCH DO WE PAY THEM NOW SO TRANSDEV IS OUR BUS VENDOR SO WHAT THAT MEANS IS THEY DO ALL OF THEM. WE OWN THE BUS FLEET BUT THEY DO ALL THE MAINTENANCE ON THE BUSSES, THEY OPERATE THE BUS YARDS AND TRANSIT OF HIRES AND EMPLOYS THE BUS DRIVERS SO THEY ARE DOING ALL THE MAINTENANCE AND ALL OF THE OPERATIONS AND THEY HIRE ALL THE BUS DRIVERS AND THE MONITORS AND THE BUS DRIVERS.  THE BUS MONITORS ARE BHP'S EMPLOYEES. YEAH SO SO WE WORK VERY CLOSELY WITH TRANSDEV WE'RE IN YEAR TWO OF A FIVE YEAR CONTRACT WITH THEM RIGHT NOW THEY HAVE A FIXED MANAGEMENT FEE WITHIN WITHIN THAT CONTRACT AS WELL AS YOU KNOW INCENTIVES FOR FOR IMPROVED PERFORMANCE AND LIQUIDATED DAMAGES. SO WHAT HAPPENS IF THEY DON'T IMPROVE AND ARE THERE INCENTIVES ARE THERE PENALTIES FOR NOT IMPROVING THE PERFORMANCE? THAT'S RIGHT. SO WITHIN THAT CONTRACT THERE'S THERE'S PERFORMANCE INCENTIVES FOR YOU KNOW, FOR HITTING CERTAIN BENCHMARKS AND THEN THERE'S SOME THERE'S LIQUIDATED DAMAGES FOR NONPERFORMANCE.  THEY WE DO THEY CHARGE AND SERVICE THE ELECTRIC BRACELET. YES THEY THEY DO ALL OF THE MAINTENANCE AND FUELING OF ALL OF OUR BUSSES INCLUDING THE ELECTRIC BUSSES AND THEN HOW HOW FAR A RATE WHAT SORT OF A RANGE DOES AN ELECTRIC BOSS HAVE JACK, YOU WANT TO TAKE THAT ONE? SHE'S OUR EXPERT ON THIS SO THANK YOU, JACK.  THANK YOU FOR THE ELECTRIC BUSSES THEY'RE ESTIMATED RANGE IS 120 MILES IN REALITY FULLY LOADED UP AND DEPENDING ON TERRAIN AND THE WAY THE DRIVER DRIVES THE BUSSES, THEY TYPICALLY WOULD GET CLOSER TO 50% OF THAT. OUR AVERAGE ROUTES WITH DEADHEAD WHICH IS THE TIME FROM THE YARD TO THE FIRST STOP OR ABOUT 60 MILES A DAY. SO FOR MANY MOST OF OUR ROUTES THAT IS A SUFFICIENT AMOUNT OF CAPACITY BUT WE'VE ALSO RECOGNIZED THAT NOT ALL OF OUR ROUTES WILL FIT THAT SO WHAT THAT MEANS IS THAT WE ARE LOOKING AT BUSSES THAT HAVE LONGER RANGE CAPACITY.  SO IN THE GROUP OF BUSSES THE 19 THAT CAME IN THIS PAST SEPTEMBER WHICH ALSO STARTED ON THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL LUCKILY THAT WAS SUCCESSFUL AND YOU PROBABLY DIDN'T RECEIVE ANY CALLS ABOUT IT WHICH IS OUR GOAL THOSE BUSSES ONE OF THEM DID HAVE A LONGER RANGE CAPACITY WITH A LARGER BATTERY SO THAT'S THE KIND OF MODEL THAT WE'RE TRYING TO MOVE TOWARDS THE TECHNOLOGY AROUND ELECTRIC BUSSES IN THE BATTERY CHEMISTRY AND JUST THE SIZE OF THE BATTERIES IS INCREASING RAPIDLY.  THAT IS AN AREA WHERE THE TECHNOLOGY IS CHANGING FRANKLY IN AN INDUSTRY WHERE THE TECHNOLOGY HAS NOT CHANGED SIGNIFICANTLY IN THE PAST 40 YEARS. SO WE ARE SEEING AN INCREASED RANGE. SO IF WE HAVE A BUSSES THAT WE BOUGHT THAT ARE DON'T HAVE ADEQUATE RANGE CAN BE RETROFITTED WITH INCREASED SIZE BATTERY SO THAT WE CAN GO FURTHER HAVE TO JUST SELL THEM TO SOMEBODY ELSE. WELL SO WHAT WE WOULD DO IS WE PUT THOSE ON THE SHORTER ROUTES THE 60 MILES IS THE AVERAGE ROUTE THERE ARE ROUTES THAT ARE SHORTER. WE ALSO ARE PILOTING RIGHT NOW RETROFITTING BUS BATTERIES THAT IS WE'RE DOING IT THROUGH A WE HAVE A PILOT WE'RE RUNNING RIGHT NOW WHERE WE ARE. IT'S CALLED REPOWERING FOR OUR PURPOSE WHERE WE ARE TAKING BUSSES THAT ARE THE ENGINES ARE NO LONGER ABLE TO POWER THE BUSSES RELIABLY PULLING THOSE ENGINES OUT AND PUTTING IN AN ELECTRIC POWER TRAIN TO POWER THE BUSSES.  WE ARE ALSO WORKING WITH THE RMV TO GET THAT INSPECTED AND ROAD READY SO THAT IS GOING TO BE GOOD TO GO. THAT IS AN IMPORTANT PART OF DECREASING THE COST OF ELECTRIFICATION AND ALSO GIVING US ADDITIONAL OPTIONS TO REPOWER BUSSES TO MEET FUTURE RANGE NEEDS.  I WANT TO ASK ABOUT ABOUT ATLANTA AND GOING BACK TO ATHLETICS AGAIN I THINK IT'S A HUGE ISSUE I I YOU KNOW BEEN TALKING TO I'VE HEARD FROM STUDENTS AND PARENTS AND COACHES RIGHT AND HIGH SCHOOL HAS GIVEN UP EVEN TRYING TO GET A BUS TO THE FOOTBALL FIELD ON A DAILY FIELD FOR PRACTICES LIKE IT'S TWO MILES AWAY BUT THEY'VE BEEN SO UNSUCCESSFUL IN GETTING A BUS TO GET THEM THERE THAT THEY'VE ACTUALLY GIVEN UP ON THE KIDS WALK TWO MILES TO THE TRAINING AND THAT'S DISRUPTED THEIR WHOLE PRE YOU KNOW ALL THE WHOLE COACHING EVERYBODY TOGETHER BEFORE THEY LEAVE SCHOOL BLAH BLAH AND THEN AND IT'S CRITICAL TO GET THERE ON A CERTAIN SCALE BECAUSE THEY'VE GOT A WINDOW OF TIME TO GET THERE BECAUSE THERE'S ANOTHER SCHOOL ANOTHER LIKE IT'S A THEY GET PRIVILEGES THEY SHARE THE FIELD WITH SIMMONS COLLEGE AND THEY IF THEY'RE NOT THERE IN TIME THEY LOSE PRACTICE TIME AND IT'S REALLY IT'S I MEAN THAT'S A HUGE ISSUE AND AND THEN OTHER OTHER INSTANCES I AM YOU KNOW ARRIVAL ON TIME LATE I HAD A YOUNG LITTLE GUY JUST STARTED SCHOOL THIS YEAR HE LOVES THE SCHOOL BUS.  HE GETS VERY EXCITED. HE WANTS TO GO ON THE SCHOOL BUS. HE CRIES OF THE SCHOOL BUS DOESN'T COME.  BUT WHAT WHAT WE'RE FINDING IS THE MORNINGS ARE NOT TOO BAD.  IT'S LATE SOMETIMES BUT OFTEN LATE IN THE AFTERNOON FREQUENTLY LATE IN THE AFTERNOON YESTERDAY THE BUS WAS ONE HOUR LATE. A GRANDPARENT WENT AND PICKED HIM UP BECAUSE HE WAS GOING TO MISS HIS SWIM CLASS IN AN AFTERSCHOOL SWIM CLASS I HAVE HEARD BUT YOU KNOW IT'S ONE OF THOSE THINGS. THE OTHER ONE WAS I KNOW OF A PRINCIPAL WHO KEEPS A CAR SEAT IN THE IN HIS OFFICE BECAUSE IF A CHILD HAS LEFT OF SCHOOL, ALEX AND IT HAPPENS AND THE PARENTS DON'T LIVE IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD AND THEY DON'T HAVE A CAR HE PUTS THE KID IN HIS OWN CAR WITH THE CAR SEAT AND DRIVES KID HOME LIKE THIS WE'RE PAYING 175 $173 MILLION FOR SCHOOL TRANSPORTATION AND THIS IS WHAT WE GOT THIS IS NOT A GOOD BARGAIN.  SO DO YOU THINK THE ZOOM APP IS GOING TO PAY DIVIDENDS IN THE LONG TERM? I THINK I JUST LOOKED UP OAKLAND UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT. THEY HAVE 30,000 STUDENTS. THEY SAVED 10,010% OF THEIR COSTS AND THEY'VE DECREASE THE NUMBER OF SCHOOL BUSSES BY 25%. DO YOU THINK WE COULD LAND IN THAT SORT OF COST SAVING AND EFFICIENCY GOING FORWARD?  I KNOW WE'RE NOT OAKLAND SO I THINK I DO THINK THAT THAT TOO I DO THINK THAT THE ZOOM APP WILL HELP US TO CONTINUE TO IMPROVE OUR OPERATIONAL EFFICIENCY. I THINK GIVEN WHERE WE'RE AT RIGHT NOW, OUR SYSTEM IS ABOVE CAPACITY MEANING WE ARE TRYING TO SQUEEZE TOO MANY BUSSES AND TOO MANY ROUTES INTO NOT ENOUGH SPACE.  AND SO I THINK YOU KNOW, AS WE IMPROVE EFFICIENCY BEFORE WE SEE ANY YOU KNOW OVERALL SHRINKING OF OF ANYTHING WITHIN TRANSPORTATION, WHAT WE'RE FIRST GOING TO SEE IS NOW WE HAVE ENOUGH CAPACITY WITHIN OUR SYSTEM WITHIN OUR SYSTEM TO IMPROVE THE ON TIME ARRIVALS AND I THINK THAT WE HAVE QUITE A BIT OF GROUND TO MAKE UP THERE FOR AS A STARTING POINT. THE OTHER QUESTION I HAD WAS AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAMS YOU KNOW WE HAVE A LOT OF STUDENTS WHO GO TO PROGRAMS AT THE YMCA, THE WEST END HOUSE OR B C Y B CYF IS SORT OF IN A HIATUS RIGHT NOW BUT WE'RE HOPING THAT THEY GET THE PROGRAMS UP AND GOING AGAIN AND AGAIN. IT'S DIFFICULT GETTING GETTING THE KIDS PICKED UP ON TIME TO GO TO THEIR AFTERSCHOOL PROGRAMS AND I UNDERSTAND THAT NOT EVERY KID GETS ON THE BUS TO GO TO THE AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAM. HOW DOES THAT WORK NOW SO FAMILIES CAN FAMILIES OR SCHOOLS ON FAMILIES BEHALF CAN REQUEST WHAT WE CALL AN ALTERNATIVE DROP OFF LOCATION WHETHER IT'S TO AN AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAM OR YOU KNOW, A RELATIVE'S HOUSE OR YOU KNOW, SOMEONE WHO PROVIDES AFTERNOON CHILDCARE. OUR ROUTING TEAM REVIEWS THOSE REQUESTS. THEY'RE NOT GUARANTEED BUT WE DO EVERYTHING WE CAN TO ACCOMMODATE THEM AND YOU KNOW, PARTICULARLY THE ONES THAT IT'S THE SAME BIG AFTERSCHOOL PROGRAMS YEAR AFTER YEAR WE MAKE SURE THOSE ARE ON THE ROUTES AND YOU CAN ASSIGN STUDENTS TO THOSE STOPS IN THE AFTERNOON.  I THINK ONE OF THE THINGS THAT THAT WE HAVE YOU KNOW, LEARNED PARTICULARLY THIS YEAR IN OUR THINKING ABOUT HOW CAN WE DO THIS BETTER YEAR IS NOT NECESSARILY NEEDING TO GET THESE REQUESTS FROM FAMILIES EVERY SINGLE YEAR IN THE SUMMER AND THINKING ABOUT HOW DO WE GET THIS INFORMATION FROM THEM EARLIER SO THAT WE CAN I THINK WHAT WE WHAT WE FIND IS YOU KNOW, MANY FAMILIES THEY THEY LET US KNOW EARLY BUT SOME FAMILIES YOU KNOW, WE ROUTE THEM TO THEIR HOME ADDRESS AND THEN IN LATE AUGUST THEY SAY OH, BUT I CAN GET THE AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAM AND THEN THAT'S A CHANGE THAT TAKES TIME FOR US TO PUT IN PLACE AND ALSO, YOU KNOW, IMPACTS THE DRIVERS AS THEY'RE DOING SOMETHING NEW.  AND SO WE'RE REALLY FOCUSED ON HOW CAN WE BE MORE PROACTIVE IN THE ENGAGEMENT WITH FAMILIES HERE TO GET THIS INFORMATION SO THAT WE CAN ROUT IT EARLIER AND THAT SO THAT IT, YOU KNOW, IS EASIER AND BETTER FOR OUR OPERATIONS AND ALSO SO THE FAMILY HAS THAT CERTAINTY GOING INTO THE SCHOOL YEAR. THANK YOU.  I'M OVER TIME. THANK YOU, MR CHAIR. THANK YOU, COUNSELOR BRIGHT AND BEFORE WE MOVE ON, I JUST WANT TO MENTION A FEW THINGS SO WE HAVE THREE MORE COUNSELORS TO GO FOR THIS FIRST FINAL QUESTIONS. I'LL THEN MOVE FORWARD WITH PUBLIC TESTIMONY WE HAVE ABOUT TEN PEOPLE WHO HAVE SIGNED UP FOR PUBLIC TESTIMONY AND TO DO THAT IN BETWEEN ROUNDS I ALSO JUST WANT TO REMIND MY COLLEAGUES THAT THE COMMITTEE DID INVITE JAMES FOR COACH TO GENERAL MANAGER FOR TRANSDIGM FOR NORTH AMERICA.  I DO NOT BELIEVE THAT JAMES IS HERE LOOKING AROUND JUST TO MAKE SURE THAT THE COMMITTEE CAN SEND QUESTIONS ON COUNSELORS BEHALF TO GET ANSWERS AS WELL. SO WITH THAT SAID I WILL NOW MOVE ON TO THE NEXT COUNSELOR. COUNSELOR FITZGERALD, YOU HAVE THE FLOOR.  THANK YOU, CHIEF. THANK YOU ALL FOR BEING HERE AND FOR DOING THE WORK THAT YOU DO. IT'S IT'S ALMOST ALMOST MISSION IMPOSSIBLE AND CERTAINLY A FOR YOU AND TO TASK AS THINGS CONTINUE TO CHANGE AND YOU GUYS HAVE DONE A FANTASTIC JOB. DAN, YOU'VE ALWAYS BEEN RESPONSIVE TO OUR OFFICE AND I ALSO THANK YOU WE DO YOU GUYS HOSTED US BACK IN THE SPRINGTIME BEFORE ANY OF THIS EVEN HAPPENED. WE GOT A CHANCE TO SEE HOW IT OPERATES SO I APPRECIATE YOU GUYS TAKING THAT TIME AND THE RESPONSE THAT HAVE TO HOW YOU HOW YOU'VE BEEN AT THE TWO THIRD CHANGES TO THE ROOTS THAT'S THAT'S A LOT AND THAT'S AFTER ROOTS ARE LOCKED IN WHAT DO YOU THINK CAUSES THAT AND HOW CAN WE HELP MAYBE GET INFORMATION OUT THERE AS TO MEAN SOME THINGS YOU CAN'T CHANGE AND THINGS COME UP IN THAT TIME LIKE YOU JUST STATED IN YOUR LAST SENTENCE BUT WHAT CAUSES IT AND WHAT CAN WE DO TO HELP?  YEAH. SO THIS IS YOU KNOW THIS IS SOMETHING THAT THAT HAPPENS EVERY YEAR OBVIOUSLY AS I SAID, WE SAW A GREATER VOLUME OF THIS THIS YEAR.  SO ROOTS LOCK USUALLY SOMETIME THE THE FIRST OR SECOND WEEK OF AUGUST FOR WHAT WE WHAT JACQUI TALKED ABOUT THE DRIVERS BID WHERE THE DRIVERS SELECT THEIR WORK FOR THE YEAR AND THEN THEY DO A DRY RUN BASED ON THAT WORK BEFORE THE START OF THE SCHOOL YEAR BUT OBVIOUSLY YOU KNOW BETWEEN AUGUST 9TH WHEN REACHED LOCKS THIS YEAR AND THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL FAMILIES ARE CONTINUING TO ENROLL IN BEEPS OR CHANGING THEIR ENROLLMENT OR CHANGING THEIR ADDRESS OR SUBMITTING AN ALTERNATIVE TRANSPORTATION REQUEST. AND YOU KNOW, IN OUR TEAM IS ROUTING THOSE STUDENTS AND ALSO LOOKING AND SAYING HOW CAN YOU KNOW WHERE ARE THESE ROUTES INEFFICIENT?  YOU KNOW, WE'RE GETTING ROUTE PROBLEMS FROM THE DRIVERS AS THEY DO THEIR DRY RUNS AND SO ALL OF THESE FACTORS TOGETHER LEAD TO, YOU KNOW, MAKING CHANGES ON YOU KNOW, ON THE ROUTES THAT THAT THEN IMPACT THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL. I THINK THAT WE DID SEE AN INCREASE IN THOSE STUDENT LEVEL ENROLLMENT CHANGES THIS YEAR I DON'T HAVE AN EXACT OF WHAT EXACTLY CAUSED THAT BUT I THINK AS WE THINK ABOUT NEXT YEAR WE ARE, YOU KNOW, WORKING REALLY CLOSELY WITH THE YOU KNOW, OFFICE OF FAMILY AND COMMUNITY ADVANCEMENT, THE WELCOME CENTERS, YOU KNOW, AND OUR DIFFERENT PARTNERS ACROSS UPS TO YOU KNOW, BETTER AND BETTER AND EARLIER ENGAGE FAMILIES TO HELP GET THEM IN IF THEY ARE GOING REGISTER FOR SCHOOL OR SUBMIT A CHANGE OF ADDRESS OR ANYTHING, TRY TO GET THAT EARLIER SO THAT WE HAVE IT FOR ROUTING AND THEN YOU KNOW, AS I WAS TALKING ABOUT IN RESPONSE TO THE PRESIDENT'S QUESTION,  YOU KNOW, WE INTERNALLY ARE WITHIN TRANSPORTATION ARE THINKING ABOUT WAYS TO ENGAGE FAMILIES EARLIER IF THEY HAVE AN TRANSPORTATION REQUEST OR ANY OTHER REQUEST FOR US TO MAKE SURE THAT WE GET THAT AS EARLY AS POSSIBLE. DOES IT WOULD IT HELP TO LENGTHEN THE TIME BEFORE IT OR MAYBE CLOSER TO THE START OF SCHOOL BEFORE DATES LOCK IN OR IS THERE ANY I MEAN IS THAT SOMETHING YOU CAN DO OR DOES IT HELP OR IS IT DOES THE LOCKING IN SORT OF JUST SAY THIS IS WHAT WE'VE GOT AT THE MOMENT WE'RE GOING TO WORK WITH IT BUT WE KNOW EVERY YEAR THAT ADJUSTMENTS ALWAYS COME AND THAT'S SORT OF BUILT IN. SO SO THE REALITY IS THAT THE LOCKING DOWN THE ROUTES IS REALLY IMPORTANT BECAUSE DRIVERS NEED TO BE ABLE TO SELECT AND PRACTICE THE WORK. SO IF WE MOVE THE DATES LATER WE REALLY ARE EATING INTO THE TIME WE NEED TO DO OUR BEST TO GET THOSE ROUTES SOLID, ADJUST ANY CONCERNS THAT ARE RAISED ABOUT THEM AND GIVE DRIVERS THE OPPORTUNITY TO PRACTICE THEM.  YOU KNOW WE HAVE SAID MANY TIMES THE DRIVERS ARE THE BACKBONE OF THIS WORK. YOU'RE HERE BECAUSE THIS IS IMPORTANT IF JUST LIKE ANYONE IF I GET A ROUTE I NEED GO DRIVE. LUCKILY I'M NOT GETTING IT ON PRINTED OUT MAPQUEST.  IT WASN'T MAPQUEST BUT THE EQUIVALENT OF A PRINTED OUT MAPQUEST DIRECTION AND I HAVE TO GO DRIVE IT WHEN YOU GO DRIVE A ROUTE FOR THE FIRST TIME KNOWING OH IT'S BETTER TO BE IN THE LEFT LANE OR THE RIGHT LANE BECAUSE I NEED TO HIT THAT TURN. IT'S HARD TO MAKE THAT TURN KNOWING THAT I DON'T WANT TO MISS THAT TURN BECAUSE IT'S A SMALL STREET LIKE ALL THOSE LITTLE THINGS THAT YOU LEARN ABOUT A ROUTE WHICH ARE DIFFERENT ON A PRACTICE THAN THEY ARE IN REAL TIME BECAUSE THE TRAFFIC CONDITIONS CHANGE BASED ON TIME OF DAY LIKE DRIVERS HAVING THE OPPORTUNITY TO DO THAT IS REALLY IMPORTANT TO THEM BEING SUCCESSFUL HOW I WOULD SAY MOVING THE HELPING FAMILIES GET IN THOSE ROUTE CHANGES, GET IN THOSE ADDRESS CHANGES, GETTING THEIR REGISTRATION TO SCHOOL EARLIER WOULD REALLY MAKE A DIFFERENCE. HOW OFTEN DO THEY PRACTICE THE ROUTE PRIOR TO THE FIRST RUN? SO THEY HAVE A THEY'RE REQUIRED TO PRACTICE AT ONE TIME AND DRIVERS TAKE THAT PRETTY SERIOUSLY AND GET OUT ON THE STREETS AND PRACTICE THOSE RUNS AND IF WE MOVED IT IF YOU DIDN'T LOCK IN THE IF YOU LOCKED IN THE ROUTES LATER THAT THE TIME TO DO ONE DRY RUN WOULD BE IS I MEAN I KNOW THIS AMOUNT OF BUS COULD ELIMINATE THE TIME TO DO THAT AND EVEN ONE RUN AND IT ALSO TAKES TIME TO ROUTE THEM YOU KNOW THERE'S A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF DATA PROCESSING THAT GOES ON IN THE BACKGROUND AND THEN THE BID PROCESS IS ALSO A MULTI-DAY PROCESS AND ALL OF THOSE THINGS DO TAKE TIME. WE HAVE STREAMLINED IT AS MUCH AS WE CAN KNOW JUST AS I'M NOT NOT SAYING THAT YOU CAN DO MORE I JUST ASK IF THAT'S THE WE'RE GOING TO KEEP TRYING TO DO MORE. SURE. WELL, I APPRECIATE THAT THERE WAS AN INCIDENT HAD AT AT THE GIVING OUT PENCILS ON THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL AND IT WAS AT MY KIDS SCHOOL AND THE BUS I SAW I'M THERE IN A SUIT AND TIE OBVIOUSLY THEY THINK LIKE OH I'LL TALK TO THIS GUY BECAUSE HE LOOKS LIKE HE'S LIKE HERE WITH THE SCHOOL. BUT YOU KNOW, I WASN'T BUT SO THE BUS DRIVER CAME OUT AND HE SAID HEY, I GOT A PROBLEM AND HE SHOWED ME A PIECE OF PAPER THAT HAD FOUR STOPS ON IT AND HE SAID THIS WAS MY THIS WAS MY ROPE. HE SAID BUT LOOK AT THE APP AND THE APP HAD 11 STOPS ON IT AND HE SAID I WAS NOT AWARE OF THIS AND SO HE SAID IT'S NOT THE ROUTE THAT I RAN, RIGHT? IT'S NOT. AND SO THAT'S WHY HE WAS LATE BECAUSE HE WAS HE WAS HE WAS PRETTY LATE THIS AGAIN THIS IS THE FIRST DAY IS THAT BECAUSE OF I QUESTIONED I SAID WELL WHY DO YOU HAVE ON A PIECE OF PAPER WHY DO YOU HAVE FOUR ROUTES AND AND IT'S THAT IN THE APP REFLECTS DIFFERENTLY IS THAT SOMETHING HE MAYBE GOT PRIOR TO WHEN ROUTES LOCKED IN AND THEN WHEN HE GOT THE APP HE LOOKS AND SAYS OH IT'S BEEN MODIFIED SINCE THE ROAD'S BEEN LOCKED IN AND I'VE ALREADY PRACTICED MY ROUTE WITH THE FOUR STOPS BUT NOW THERE'S 11. SO ON DAY ONE AND WE THROW IN A LOT OF CURVEBALLS TO THE BUS DRIVERS AND THAT'S CAUSING THIS ISSUE AND ABSOLUTELY OKAY THAT'S GOOD. WELL BUS DRIVERS, THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR HANGING IN THERE WITH ALL THOSE CURVEBALLS BECAUSE I KNOW I KNOW IT CAN BE A LOT CHANGES THE ROUTE CHANGES THE TRAIN DIRECTIONS AND I JUST I UNDERSTAND ALL THAT I KNOW THE IS UP BUT THIS SCHOOL STAGGERED START TIMES IS THAT A DIRECT RESULT FROM THE BUSSES IS BECAUSE THE ROUTES THAT THEY HAVE TO MAKE YOU KNOW THERE'S SCHOOLS START AT EIGHT MY KIDS WILL START AT 920 I HATE IT AND SO IN THAT IS STRICTLY WE STAGGER IT DUE TO HAVING BUSSES BE AVAILABLE DOING THE FIRST SHIFT SECOND SHIFT IN THE MORNING RIGHT AND THAT THERE'S NO OTHER REASON SCHOOLS ARE STAGGERED. I JUST WANT TO BE SURE AS I GO FORWARD THERE MAY BE OTHER REASONS I DEFER TO BRIAN BUT I KNOW THAT IS ONE OF THE PRIMARY REASONS THAT'S A PRETTY STANDARD THING THAT YOU KNOW,  MOST URBAN SCHOOL DISTRICTS WILL HAVE EITHER TWO OR THREE START TIMES AND IT'S IT'S USUALLY DRIVEN BY YOU KNOW, ALLOWING TRANSPORTATION BUSSES TO DO MULTIPLE TRIPS IN A ROW.  I WAS GOING TO SAY JUST TO ADD TO THAT A LOT OF THE DIFFERENT SCHOOLS HAVE DIFFERENT PROGRAMS THAT HAPPEN BEFORE AND AFTER SCHOOL AND BECAUSE OF THE WAY THAT SOME OF THE UNIONS ARE BID ARE THE HOURS THAT THE TEACHERS ARE ALSO GOING TO WORK WITHIN THE INDEPENDENT BUILDINGS. AND SO MODIFYING THAT MAKES A CHANGE.  SO YOU'LL SEE SCHOOL START TIMES FROM 715 SEVEN 2730 THAT VARY THE WHOLE WAY THROUGH AND BECAUSE SOME OF THEM ARE SEMI-AUTONOMOUS SCHOOLS YOU'LL NOTICE THAT THERE'S THE UNIQUE PROGRAMING AND STRUCTURE THAT SOMETIMES HAS A REFLECTION ON THOSE BELL TIMES AND HOURS THAT WE HAVE WHICH WE ARE TRYING TO WORK TO MAKE SURE THEY'RE A LITTLE BIT MORE UNIFORM RIGHT NOW. YEAH, I APPRECIATE THAT. THANK YOU, SIR. THANK YOU ALL AGAIN.  THANK YOU. ACCOUNTS OF FITZGERALD SOUNDS LIKE A LOT OF STUFF OUT THERE. YOU HAVE THE FLOOR.  THANK YOU, CHAIR. AND THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR BEING HERE AND ANSWERING OUR QUESTIONS. A LOT OF MY QUESTIONS HAVE BEEN ASKED AND THAT'S THE GOOD THING ABOUT ALMOST GOING LAST YEAR. I DO JUST WANT TO SAY THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR WORK AND THANK YOU FOR HOSTING ME AT YOUR HEADQUARTERS AT THE BRUCE BOWLING BUILDING. IT WAS VERY INFORMATIONAL AND IT WAS DURING A BUSY WEEK AND SO I GOT A CHANCE TO SEE SOME OF THE CALL TAKERS TAKE CALLS FROM PARENTS AND AS MY COLLEAGUES HAVE MENTIONED WE DO GET EMAILS AND CALLS FROM PARENTS ASKING WHAT HAPPENED AND A PART OF OUR JOB IS ASKING QUESTIONS AND FIGURING OUT WHERE TO BREAK DOWN ANY ANY CHALLENGES BUT SEEING THEM AS OPPORTUNITIES TO DO BETTER AND AT THE SAME TIME WHILE WE HOLD YOU ACCOUNTABLE WE CAN SAY THAT PROGRESS HAS BEEN MADE RIGHT GOING FROM PAPER LIST TO WHAT WE HAVE NOW IS LIGHT YEARS FROM WHERE WE WERE. AND SO I JUST WANT TO CONGRATULATE YOU ALL ON THAT. OBVIOUSLY THERE ARE SOME ISSUES THAT WE NEED TO FIGURE OUT BUT IT SOUNDS LIKE YOU ALL ARE WORKING THROUGH THAT. BUT THIS ZOOM APP IS A IS A GOOD START AND THERE ARE SYSTEMIC CHALLENGES THAT ARE CHALLENGES THAT YOU HAVE INHERITED. OBVIOUSLY AND WE HAVE TO BE ABLE TO SOLVE THE ISSUES IN THE LONG TERM BUT ALSO IN SHORT TERM I HAVE THE HONOR AND PRIVILEGE OF REPRESENTING AN ISLAND AND A PENINSULA AND SO WE HAVE UNIQUE TRANSPORTATION CHALLENGES. WE'RE ALWAYS A BRIDGE AND A TUNNEL TOO FAR FOR SOME KIDS AND WE REVIEWED THIS WHEN WE WENT TO YOUR YOUR HEADQUARTERS IN CHARLESTOWN CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG IN THE PM SLOT FROM GOING FROM CHARLESTOWN TO DOWNTOWN HAS ONE OF THE WORST TIMES AND THAT IS DUE TO CONSTRUCTION OF THE NOW BILL RUSSELL BRIDGE, THE NORTH WASHINGTON STREET BRIDGE.  I DO I DO WANT TO CALL ATTENTION TO ONE PARTICULAR INCIDENT AND WE'RE NOT GOING TO GET INTO THE DETAILS OF IT BECAUSE I KNOW THERE ARE MANY DIFFERENT CHALLENGES THAT PARENTS FACE BUT IT IS RELATED TO A CHARLESTOWN PARENT AND IS GOING TO PROVIDE SOME CONTEXT TO MY QUESTION. THERE WAS A STUDENT WHO WAS ON A SPECIAL EDUCATION BUS WHO WAS MARKED AS A NO SHOW BY THE DRIVER ON ZOOM WHILE HE WAS THERE AND SO WHAT CAME TO LIGHT FROM THIS INCIDENT IN THIS EMAIL THAT I FOUND OUT ABOUT IS THAT THE PARENT LOST THE ABILITY TO TRACK THEIR CHILD BECAUSE HE WAS LISTED AS NOT BEING THERE. HE WAS ON THAT ONE MILE RIDE GIVEN THE THE TRAFFIC FOR ABOUT AN HOUR AND A HALF AND WAS DROPPED OFF AT A DIFFERENT LOCATION THAT WASN'T REGISTERED. AND SO HAS THERE BEEN ANY WORK DONE TO ENSURE THAT A PARENT DOESN'T LOSE THEIR ABILITY TO TRACK THEIR CHILD? I GUESS HOW CAN THAT BE CORRECTED? IS THERE ANYTHING IN THE ZOOM APP THAT WE COULD BUILD OUT TO ENSURE THAT THAT DOESN'T HAPPEN AGAIN? YEAH. YEAH. SO YOU KNOW NOTHING'S PERFECT, RIGHT?  THE GOOD THING ABOUT THE ZOOM APP IS WHEN STUDENTS ARE, YOU KNOW, CANCEL THE RIGHTS IN ADVANCE OR YOU KNOW, THE STUDENTS WHO ARE MARKED IS NOT RIDING IN THE AFTERNOON IF THEY'RE THE ONLY STUDENT AT THAT STOP THE ROUTE IS GOING TO BE YOU KNOW IN REAL TIME UPDATED SO THE BUS DOESN'T NEED TO GO TO THAT STOP THAT MAKES THE ROUTE MORE EFFICIENT. YOU KNOW IT'S GOING TO IMPROVE TIMELINESS.  BUT YOU KNOW, THE DOWNSIDE OBVIOUSLY IS IF THERE'S A MISTAKE THAT YOU KNOW THAT PARENT THE BUS IS NO LONGER ROUTED TO THAT STOP AND THE PARENT HAS LOST THE ABILITY TO TRACK SO I THINK WHERE WE'RE REALLY FOCUSED ON IS YOU KNOW, WE'RE ASKING A LOT OF OUR DRIVERS TO YOU KNOW, TO MARK ALL THESE STUDENTS ON AND OFF THE BUS. HOW DO WE PROVIDE ADDITIONAL SUPPORT TO MAKE SURE THAT, YOU KNOW, THEY HAVE WHAT THEY NEED AND YOU KNOW, FOR WORKING CLOSELY WITH THE SCHOOLS AND THE OPERATIONAL LEADERS TO THINK ABOUT HOW CAN WE, YOU KNOW, IMPROVE DISMISSAL TO MAKE THIS EASIER TO MINIMIZE AND ELIMINATE THOSE TYPES OF ISSUES AND ERRORS.  AND YOU HAD SAID EARLIER IN YOUR PRESENTATION THAT YOU CAN NOW SEE THE PICTURE OF THE CHILD IN THE AD THAT THE BUS DRIVER HAS IT ON THEIR TABLET.  SO THAT WOULD YOU CONSIDER THAT AN AREA IN WHICH YOU KNOW, WE CAN IMPROVE THE TRAINING OF THE DRIVERS JUST TO ENSURE THAT NO KID IS LABELED AS A NO SHOW?  I DON'T REALLY KNOW HOW HOW SOMEBODY WOULD BE LABELED AS A NO SHOW ESPECIALLY IF THEY CAN SEE IT WITH THE PICTURE. BUT YEAH, SO JUST TO BE CLEAR AND THE PICTURES YOU KNOW THAT IS IT'S NOT BY DEFAULT THERE. IT'S IF THE PARENT CHOOSES TO UPLOAD A PICTURE AND SO YOU KNOW WE'VE DONE A LOT OF OUTREACH AND ENGAGEMENT TO FAMILIES TO YOU KNOW, REALLY PUSH THAT AS A REAL THAT'S GOING TO HELP IMPROVE STUDENTS SAFETY, YOU KNOW, OF THEIR STUDENT PARTICULARLY YOU KNOW, WITH OUR YOUNGEST STUDENTS OR YOU KNOW, NON-VERBAL STUDENTS STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES.  YOU KNOW, OBVIOUSLY NOT EVERY STUDENT HAS A HAS A PICTURE IN THE APP RIGHT NOW. AND SO, YOU KNOW, THAT MAY VERY WELL HAVE BEEN A STUDENT TO WHO DIDN'T NECESSARILY HAVE A PHOTO UPLOADED THANK YOU WE TALKED ABOUT CONSTRUCTION OF OF THE BRIDGE AND HOW THAT MIGHT BE CONTRIBUTING TO TO TRAFFIC DO YOU HAVE ANY SORT OF ANALYSIS OF HOW CONSTRUCTION OR INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS ARE ACTUALLY IMPACT DOING SOME OF THESE ROUTES? IS IT LABELED IN THE SYSTEM? ARE YOU HOW ARE YOU TRACKING THAT IF YOU ARE TRACKING IT? YEAH NO I THINK IT'S A IT'S A GREAT QUESTION. CONSTRUCTION HAS DEFINITELY HAS A VERY SIGNIFICANT IMPACT ON ON THE BUSSES YOU KNOW THERE'S A LOT OF CONSTRUCTION GOING ON IN THE CITY RIGHT NOW WHICH IS WHICH IS GREAT.  THAT'S YOU KNOW WE WANT THAT TO HAPPEN OBVIOUSLY BUT THAT KNOW THAT CREATES ADDITIONAL DELAYS AND MAKES IT DIFFICULT TO GET DOWN CERTAIN STREETS AND YOU KNOW, THAT CAN BE, YOU KNOW, UNPREDICTABLE AT TIMES. AND SO YOU KNOW, I DON'T HAVE THAT EXACT ANALYSIS BUT YOU KNOW, CERTAINLY WE ARE TRACKING EVERY SINGLE DAY EVERY BUS THAT'S LATE AND THEN IDENTIFYING THE ONES THAT ARE CONSISTENT LATE AND DOING DEEP DIVES ON EACH ONE OF THOSE, YOU KNOW, TO UNDERSTAND IS THIS YOU KNOW, IS A ROUTING ADJUSTMENT NEED IS SOMETHING OPERATIONAL GOING ON IS HAPPENING HERE AND THEN OVER THE PAST YEAR WE'VE ALSO REALLY BEGAN TO INCREASE OUR COLLABORATION WITH BOSTON TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT. YOU KNOW, WE HAVE MEMBERS OF OUR TEAM WHO REGULARLY MEET WITH THEM NOW YOU KNOW, PARTICULARLY FOR SOME OF THE LARGER PROJECTS TO MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVE, YOU KNOW, INSIGHT INTO WHAT'S COMING UP AND SO THAT WE CAN GET AHEAD OF IT. BUT I THINK IT'S IT'S AN AREA WHERE WE ESPECIALLY YOU KNOW, AS WE'RE GOING TO CONTINUE TO HAVE HIGH LEVELS OF CONSTRUCTION IN THE CITY, MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE REALLY, YOU KNOW, PUTTING THE APPROPRIATE LEVEL OF FOCUS HERE . YEAH, I REALLY LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING THE VARIATION BETWEEN LAST YEAR OR THIS YEAR AND NEXT YEAR WHEN SOME OF THAT CONSTRUCTION IS IS COMPLETED TO SEE WHAT THE DIFFERENCE IS. I'M HOPEFUL FOR A POSITIVE OUTCOME BUT JUST WILL SAY I DON'T KNOW IF MY TIME IS UP BUT YESTERDAY WHEN NEWS BROKE OF WHAT WE ALL KNOW HAPPENED YESTERDAY AN ELECTRIC BUS DROVE BY ME AND IT GAVE ME A GLIMMER OF HOPE THAT WE ARE WORKING TOWARDS A A GREENER AND MORE EQUITABLE FUTURE.  SO I JUST WANTED TO TO SAY THAT IT GAVE ME A LITTLE BIT OF HOPE YESTERDAY SO THANK YOU. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, COUNSELOR. COUNSELOR WELL, I RECOGNIZE THAT WE'VE BEEN JOINED BY COUNSELOR BRIAN MORROW. NEXT UP WE HAVE COUNSELOR TYLER FERNANDEZ ANDERSON.  APPLAUSE THANK YOU, MR CHAIR.  THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR BEING HERE AND ALL OF YOUR WORK. I KNOW IT'S NOT EASY. IT'S A HUGE CHALLENGE BEFORE YOU AND READ THE NUMBERS AND I WASN'T HERE FOR THE PRESENTATION BUT I DID TRY TO UNDERSTAND IT AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE WHILE I WAS HERE.  DO YOU HAVE OPPORTUNITIES FOR THE PARENTS OR STUDENTS TO MEET THEIR DRIVERS TO THE SCHOOL YEAR BEGINNING AND NOT NOT CURRENTLY. OKAY. AND THEN I GUESS YOU KNOW, ONCE YOU KNOW THE ROUTES HOW HOW MUCH TIME BEFORE A WINDOW TIME BEFORE SCHOOL STARTS DO YOU KNOW THE ROUTES?  YEAH. SO THE ROUTES ARE YOU KNOW WE'RE CONSTANTLY MAKING READING UPDATES EVEN NOW YOU KNOW, AS AS STUDENT ENROLLMENTS CHANGE OR ADDRESS CHANGE OR YOU TO MAKE IMPROVEMENTS TO EFFICIENCY SO WE'RE CONSTANTLY THROUGHOUT THE YEAR UPDATING AND EMBELLISHING THE ROUTES. BUT IN THE PACIFIC TOO EXCUSE ME EXCUSE ME SORRY.  IN THE BEGINNING RIGHT BEFORE ONLY 5 MINUTES TO ANXIETY. RIGHT. YOU KNOW HOW WE'RE ALL TRYING TO GET THAT OUR QUESTIONS AND NO WORRIES. I APOLOGIZE THAT I'M GOING TO HAVE TO BE VERY QUICK AND SHORT IN THE BEGINNING YOU HAVE YOU HAVE TO PUT TOGETHER YOUR ROUTES. HOW SOON BEFORE SCHOOL IS IT? IS IT ALWAYS ONGOING? YOU IT IT'S ALWAYS ONGOING BUT ROUTES LOCK EVERY THURSDAY FOR THE FOLLOWING WEEK AND SO ROUTES WOULD LOCK ON THURSDAY A WEEK BEFORE THE FIRST GOT IT DO YOU DO DRY RUN SESSIONS OR NOW? YES SO ANY TIME A ROUTE CHANGE DRIVERS ARE REQUIRED TO DO A DRY RUN BEFORE THAT CHANGE COURSE. IS THAT AN OPPORTUNITY FOR PARENTS TO MEET THEIR DRIVERS PRIOR I THINK IT'S SOMETHING WE'D HAVE TO THINK ABOUT AND EXPLORE FURTHER. THOSE DRY RUNS DON'T NECESSARILY ALWAYS HAPPEN AT THE EXACT SAME TIME AS THE ROUTER. YOU KNOW DRIVERS CAN COME IN ON WEEKENDS BUT IT'S SOMETHING WE NEED TO THINK ABOUT. BUT THE IDEA IS TO PLAY OUT WHAT IT COULD BE LIKE, RIGHT? SO PERFECT OPPORTUNITY TO SAY LET'S DO IT EXACTLY LIKE A DRILL SO THAT PARENTS COULD ACTUALLY GET A CUSTOM PRIOR. YEAH NO I THINK IT'S A IT'S A REALLY CREATIVE IDEA THAT WE NEED TO THINK ABOUT HOW WE COULD MAKE THAT HAPPEN. BUT YEAH I APPRECIATE IT THINKS AND SO AS FAR AS THE THE APP ITSELF DOES IT SO CAPABILITY EASE IT'S JUST BASICALLY YOU LOOK ON THERE'S A DASHBOARD IS THERE A DASHBOARD SPECIFICALLY FOR CHILDREN TOO OR JUST FOR PARENTS MOST THESE KIDS HAVE PHONES YEAH SO THAT THE LOG IN IS FOR PARENTS BUT I KNOW MANY PARENTS HAVE YOU KNOW LOGGED THEIR THEIR CHILDREN IN AS WELL I'M TRACKING THEIR OWN SO THEY CAN ALSO LIKE YEAH CHECK OKAY COOL I SEE A LOT OF KIDS AT BUS STOPS TRACKING THEIR BUS. AWESOME. AND THEN COMMUNICATION SO I KNOW MY CALL TOTALLY DIFFERENT BUT THEY DO HAVE THEY ALL HAVE BUS MONITORS FOR OBVIOUS REASONS THEY'RE COMING FROM FAR AWAY TO ALL SCHOOLS DEPENDING ON AGE HAVE BUS MONITORS SO.  WE PROVIDE BUS MONITORS FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES SO ALL OF OUR BUSSES THAT HAVE STABILITY DISABILITIES ON BOARD WOULD HAVE A BUS MONITOR. SO PRACTICALLY WHAT THAT MEANS IS EVERY NON BIG BUS SHOULD HAVE A BUS MONITOR ON BOARD THE THE FULL BUSSES THE BIG BUSSES DO NOT BY DEFAULT DO NOT HAVE BUS MONITORS. MANY OF THE OTHER BIG BUSSES WITH SMALL CHILDREN TOO. THEY CAN SOMETIMES OKAY SO THEN IF A BUS DOESN'T ARRIVE AND A PARENT SOMEHOW THERE'S A LAG GLITCH WITH THE APP THE THERE'S NO ONE ON THE BUS TO CALL THE PARENTS AND SAY I HAVE TEN KIDS LEFT. WE'RE ALL OVER TIME. WE'RE ONLY AND HERE'S MY LIST OF MY PARENTS WITH THE PHONE NUMBER.  I'M GOING TO CALL THEM AND GIVE THEM THIS COURTESY AND SAY WE ARE ONE HOUR OR 2 HOURS BEHIND. THERE'S NO SUCH THING.  IF THERE ISN'T IF THERE ISN'T, YEAH. SO I'M JUST DIGESTING. SO FOR EXAMPLE, I HAVE MY KID ON BUS IT'S A BIG BUS DOESN'T HAVE A MONITOR. SO YOU'RE SAYING IF THAT BUS IS 2 HOURS LATE AND SOMEHOW THE APP IS GLITCHING SOMEHOW I CAN'T GET INFORMATION ON THE APP OR DASHBOARD I CALL NOBODY'S PICKING UP THE PHONE. I WON'T KNOW WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH MY KID YOU JUST THE BUS SHOWS UP OR DOESN'T BECAUSE THERE IS NO BUS MONITOR ON THAT BIG BUS WITH MY SEVEN YEAR OLD. YEAH SO IT DOES NOT HAVE VISIBILITY.  SO I THINK IF A BUS WERE RUNNING NOT EVEN 2 HOURS BUT YOU KNOW, 20 PLUS MINUTES LATE I THINK OUR YOU KNOW, OUR BUS DRIVERS UNDERSTAND THAT THE IMPACT THAT THAT MIGHT HAVE ON FAMILIES AND SO YOU KNOW THEY WOULD THEY WOULD RADIO THAT INFORMATION INTO OUR DISPATCHER, OUR SAFETY DESK AND THEN OUR TEAM IF WE SAW THAT THE APP WASN'T WORKING, WE WOULD KNOW TO TO REACH OUT TO THOSE FAMILIES, YOU KNOW, INDIVIDUALLY AND ESPECIALLY IF A BUS WAS ANYWHERE NEAR 2 HOURS LATE, YOU KNOW, I WOULD I WOULD HOPE AND EXPECT THAT OUR TEAM HAS ALREADY REACHED OUT TO ALL THOSE FAMILIES. OKAY. AND WHAT I CAN ADD TO THAT IS THAT'S PART OF THE JOB OF THE CUSTOMER SERVICE TEAM WHICH IS WHY WE DO HAVE THAT SIZE OF A TEAM IS SO THAT IF THAT SITUATION WERE TO EXIST YOU WOULDN'T BE RELYING ON THE BUS MONITOR TO CALL TEN DIFFERENT FAMILIES. WE WOULD HAVE A TEAM WHO COULD ALL TOGETHER BE CALLING THOSE FAMILIES TO TRY TO GET THAT INFORMATION TO THEM AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE.  THAT'S REASSURING. LAST QUESTION. SO IF YOU WERE TO GIVE ME A LIST OF YOUR PAIN POINTS, ALL OF THE THINGS THAT YOU'RE LIKE OH, WE'VE GOT TO DO THAT BETTER ,JUST THESE FIVE THINGS COULD BE TEN. COULD YOU GIVE ME THAT LIST SO THAT I'M CLEAR BECAUSE WE MAY HEAR WE MAY SEE THE NEWS OR WHATEVER AND READ SEE INFORMATION, GET CALLS FROM CONSTITUENTS.  RIGHT. BUT YOU KNOW, WHAT ARE YOUR BIGGEST PAIN POINTS AND YOU HAVE THAT LIST CAN YOU GIVE IT THAT PROVIDE THAT TO US NOW?  YEAH, I THINK YOU KNOW, CERTAINLY ONE OF THE NUMBER ONE PAIN POINTS IS THE START OF THE SCHOOL YEAR AND THE THE INHERENT TENSION THAT WE'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT WITH YOU KNOW, THE TIMING OF WHEN BUSSES NEED TO BE ROUTED AND WHEN BUS ROUTES NEED TO LOCK AND THE TENSION BETWEEN THAT AND THE FACT THAT, YOU KNOW, MANY FAMILIES ARE JUST MOVING INTO BOSTON IN AUGUST AND THEY'RE STILL REGISTERING THEIR STUDENTS FOR SCHOOL. AND SO I THINK THAT AND THE IMPACT THAT HAS ON THE START OF THE SCHOOL YEAR IS ONE OF OUR MOST CONSISTENT AND LARGEST PAIN POINTS.  I THINK I'D HIGHLIGHT THAT ONE AND I MEAN I'M NOT SURE IF JACQUI OR OTHERS WANTED TO ADD OTHERS BUT I THINK THAT IS A CONSISTENT CHALLENGE OF MAKING SURE WE HAVE CORRECT INFORMATION SO THAT WE CAN ROUTE THE STUDENTS WHO NEED WITH THE SUPPORT THAT THEY NEED ON THE BUS AND IT'S ONE THAT WE ARE WORKING REALLY URGENTLY WITH OURS WITH PARTNERS THROUGHOUT THE DISTRICT ON TO TRY TO IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF THE INFORMATION AND THE ACCURACY OF THE INFORMATION THAT WE GET. SO THAT'S IMPROVING DATA SYSTEMS AND THAT'S IMPROVING DATA COLLECTION SYSTEMS SO THAT THAT INFORMATION IS TIMELY AND ACCURATE AND THAT IS I WOULD SAY OUR BIGGEST PAIN POINT. I WOULD ALSO ADD NON RIDERSHIP FOR A PARENT THAT KNOWS THAT THEIR STUDENT IS NOT GOING TO RIDE BUT HASN'T SLOWED THAT. SO INSIDE OF THE APP RIGHT THAT'S GOING TO MAKE THE BUS STOP THEIR WAY THERE BECAUSE THE BUS TO ALSO HAVE SOME TURBULENCE IN IN THEIR RIDE IN THEIR TRANSITIONS AND I WOULD ECHO THAT JUST THE NUMBER OF FAMILIES I'VE WORKED WITH WHERE THERE WASN'T SPACE ON THE BUS SO WE COULD NOT GIVE THEM AN ALTERNATIVE STOP FOR AN AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAM, FOR EXAMPLE AND THEN IT TURNS OUT THAT MAYBE FIVE OR SIX STUDENTS DON'T ACTUALLY NEED THE BUS AND AREN'T RIDING AND THAT IS HOLDING UP THE OPPORTUNITY FOR THAT FAMILY WHO REALLY NEEDS THAT SPACE TO USE IT. AND THAT'S WHY WE'RE REALLY THANKFUL TO HAVE THE APP BECAUSE IT'S GIVING US THAT DATA SO THAT WE CAN DO THE 1 TO 1 OUTREACH WITH THE SCHOOLS.  THIS HAPPENED JUST JUST TWO DAYS AGO WHERE I HAD A BUS THAT DID NOT HAVE ENOUGH SPACE AFTER THE OUTREACH TO THE SCHOOLS BASED ON THE ZOOM DATA WE WERE ABLE TO GET THAT FAMILY ON THAT BUS AGAIN. AND THEN IF I IF I MAY JUST VERY QUICKLY I THINK THE OTHER ONE THAT I WOULD HIGHLIGHT AND YOU KNOW, WE HAVE SOME OF OUR BUS MONITORS HERE WITH WITH US TODAY I THINK THAT YOU KNOW, HOW DO WE MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE GIVING OUR BUS MONITORS THE TRAINING THAT THEY NEED AND THE INDIVIDUALIZED INFORMATION ABOUT THE STUDENTS THAT THEY'RE SUPPORTING AND I KNOW CAPACITY BUILDING, RIGHT? YEAH. OKAY. LIKE THE PAY LIKE WHY SHOULD WE WORK FOR A SCHOOL BUS? WHY SHOULD WE DRIVE THAT?  WE COULD DRIVE AN UBER MAKE MORE MONEY. YEAH, THAT'S RIGHT. THAT'S THAT'S TOUGH. BUT I DO I APPRECIATE YOUR ANSWERS AND THANK YOU, MR CHAIR. AND GOOD COUNSELOR COUNSELOR WHERE YOU HAVE THE FLOOR ENVIRONMENT.  THANK YOU, CHAIR AND THANK YOU TO THE ADMINISTRATION FOR BEING HERE AND ALL THE WORK THAT YOU DO. I KNOW YOU KNOW, JUST BASED OFF OUR RECENT CONVERSATION AND THEN ME VISITING THE TRANSPORTATION THE TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT, I KNOW THAT YOU GUYS ARE WORKING HARD ON THIS ISSUE AND MAKING SURE THAT OUR STUDENTS GET TO BP AND GET TO SCHOOL ON TIME. SO I JUST WANT TO SAY THANK YOU FOR YOUR WORK AND EVERYONE'S WORK INSIDE OF THE DEPARTMENT.  A FEW QUESTIONS IS DOES DOES THE APP ALERT YOU WHEN WHEN THE BUS IS IT ON ROUTE OR THERE'S NO DRIVER FOR THE ROUTE HOUR? YES. SO WITHIN THE DISPATCH CONTROL CENTER VIEW THAT YOU KNOW THE DISPATCH AND SAFETY TEAM AND OUR OPERATIONS AND CUSTOMER SERVICE TEAMS HAVE YOU KNOW THAT WILL SHOW ANY BUSSES THAT ARE RUNNING LATE OR ANY BUSSES THAT YOU KNOW HAVEN'T YET SIGNED IN. BUT YOU KNOW, THE ROUTE SHOULD HAVE STARTED BY NOW OR YOU KNOW, BUSSES THAT THAT DON'T CURRENTLY HAVE A DRIVER ANY OF THOSE YOU KNOW ANYTHING OTHER THAN BASICALLY THE THE BUSSES RUNNING AS EXPECTED IT'S GOING TO POP UP ON THE YOU KNOW WHAT WE CALLED THE LIVE VIEW IN OUR DISPATCH CONTROL CENTER ALSO AND TRAINING ON THE APP HOW DO WE MAKE SURE THAT ALL THE BUS DRIVERS, ALL THE MONITORS HAVE BEEN TRAINED ON THE APP SO AT THIS TIME IT IS IT'S THE DRIVERS WHO ARE BEING TRAINED ON THE APP THE WE ARE VERY FORTUNATE IN BOSTON TO HAVE A SIGNIFICANT CORE OF DRIVER TRAINERS SO WE HAVE TEN OF THOSE DRIVER TRAINERS THROUGH TRANSDEV WHO ARE WHO WORK AT THE YARDS THEY ARE WORKING THIS IS ONE OF THE AREAS THEY TRAIN ON BUT THEY ARE AVAILABLE TO TRAIN DRIVERS. THEY ARE VERY KNOWLEDGEABLE ABOUT THE APP AND THEY ARE VERY GOOD AT TRAINING AND THAT WE ARE CONTINUING TO OFFER TO IS THE TRAINING IS IT IS A MANDATORY TRAINING OR VOLUNTARY CAN WE SAY LIKE 100% OF OUR DRIVERS HAVE BEEN TRAINED ON THE APP? YES YES OKAY. BUT OBVIOUSLY WITH ANY NEW TECHNOLOGY SOME PEOPLE WILL NEED ADDITIONAL SUPPORT. RIGHT. AND THEN WHEN THOSE DRIVERS DO NEED ADDITIONAL SUPPORT THERE IS OPPORTUNITY LOTS OF OPPORTUNITY TO GET TRAINED ON THAT.  OKAY. AND THEN IS THERE ANY POINT WHERE YOU KNOW, WE TAKE A LOOK AT THE DATA AND SEE THAT YOU KNOW, NOT AS MANY BUT DO WE EVER CONSOLIDATE BUS ROUTES? HOW IS THAT DECISION BEING MADE AND HE'S WALK ME THROUGH THAT PROCESS. YEAH. YEAH. SO THE ZOOM THAT PROVIDES US WITH WITH RIDERSHIP DATA YOU KNOW WE'RE TWO MONTHS INTO THE SCHOOL YEAR NOW AND WE'RE STARTING TO TAKE A LOOK AT WHAT WE'RE SEEING FROM FROM THAT DATA.  YOU KNOW, I THINK NOT TRUE. I THINK YOU YOU WEREN'T HERE WHEN WE TALKED ABOUT THIS A LITTLE BIT BEFORE. BUT JUST TO QUICKLY RECAP, WHAT WE FOUND IS A LITTLE OVER 1300 STUDENTS OUT OF THE 22,000 ISH THAT WE TRANSPORT HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED AS AS NOT RIDING THE BUS THROUGH THE APP AND YOU KNOW, IN SOME CASES THAT'S BECAUSE YOU KNOW THE BUS IS RUNNING LATE OR SOMETHING AND WE NEED TO FIX A PROBLEM BUT THEY WANT TO USE THE BUS AND IN OTHER CASES IT'S YOU KNOW, THE STUDENT DOESN'T NEED THE BUS AND WE CAN HELP THEM. YOU KNOW, WE WORK WITH THE SCHOOL AND FAMILY TO SEE IF IT MAKES SENSE TO PAUSE THEIR BUS ASSIGNMENT. BUT I THINK TO YOUR SPECIFIC QUESTION ON CONSOLIDATION, I THINK THAT IS NOT, YOU KNOW, THE ZOOM APP. YOU KNOW, OUR REAL FOCUS WITH IT RIGHT NOW IS HOW DO WE IMPROVE SERVICE, HOW DO WE MAKE BUSSES RUN MORE ON TIME AND YOU KNOW, CONSOLIDATION IS NOT SOMETHING THAT WE'RE NECESSARILY CONSIDERING AT THIS TIME. OKAY. AND THEN I'M NOT SURE IF YOU GUYS HAVE THIS BUT IF NOT IF WE COULD JUST YOU KNOW, DO THE CHAIR REQUEST FOR THIS INFORMATION, HOW MANY STUDENTS USING TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM ACTUALLY COME IN FROM, YOU KNOW, DIFFERENT TOWNS OR CITIES ? I KNOW WE SPEND ABOUT 60 MILLION PER YEAR BUSING STUDENTS IN FROM OUTSIDE OF BOSTON AND CONVERSELY HOW MANY ARE LEAVING THE CITY TO ATTEND SCHOOL ELSEWHERE AND THEN LIKE WHAT'S THE COST AROUND THAT AND THEN WHAT ARE THE SOCIAL ASSOCIATED COSTS OF TRANSPORTING EACH STUDENT JUST KIND OF WANT TO GIVE IT LIKE A COST BREAKDOWN? YEAH. SO WE PROVIDE YELLOW BUSSES ONLY FOR STUDENTS WHO LIVE IN BOSTON AND ARE ATTENDING A SCHOOL WITHIN BOSTON OR WHO HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED THAT CANNOT MEET THEIR NEEDS AND SO THEY'RE ATTENDING AN OUT OF DISTRICT PLACEMENT WHICH IS INSIDE YOU KNOW SOMETIMES INSIDE BOSTON OR SOMETIMES OUTSIDE THE CITY AND WE HAVE A COST FOR THAT AT A DISTRICT PLACEMENT. YEAH. SO AT A VERY HIGH LEVEL, YOU KNOW CORNER STOPS STUDENTS WHICH IS A YOU KNOW GENERAL EDUCATION BUS RIDER WHO'S PICKED UP AT A CENTRALIZED CORNER STOPS TYPICALLY WITH OTHER STUDENTS IN THEIR NEIGHBORHOOD. THOSE STUDENTS COST AROUND $4,000 A YEAR TO TRANSPORT STUDENTS WITH DOOR TO DOOR TRANSPORTATION WHO ARE PICKED UP AT THEIR HOME ADDRESS. YOU KNOW, BUS STOP JUST FOR THEM. THOSE STUDENTS COST AROUND $8,000 A YEAR TO TRANSPORT STUDENTS WHO ARE BEING TRANSPORT AIDED OUT OF DISTRICT BECAUSE THEY'RE TYPICALLY ONE OF ONLY ONE OR TWO STUDENTS ON THE BUS. THEY COST AROUND $40,000 A YEAR TO TRANSPORT AND HOW MANY STUDENTS ARE WE TRANSPORTING OUT OF DISTRICT IN THE RANGE OF ABOUT 200 RIGHT NOW 200 AND THEN NOT ON YELLOW BUSSES BUT YOU KNOW, JUST TO MAKE SURE WE'RE COMPREHENSIVE WE ALSO HAVE STUDENTS WHO ATTEND SCHOOL IN BOSTON BUT HAVE BEEN DISPLACED OUTSIDE THE CITY DUE TO HOMELESSNESS OR BEING IN DCF CUSTODY WHERE THOSE STUDENTS RECEIVE VAN TRANSPORTATION BACK INTO THE CITY. YOU KNOW THAT ALSO THERE'S AROUND 500 OF THOSE STUDENTS RECEIVING THAT TRANSPORTATION RIGHT NOW AND THAT COSTS AROUND $40,000 A YEAR AS WELL 40,000 FOR THE 500 STUDENTS TOTAL OR PER STUDENT. 40,000 PER STUDENT. ALL RIGHT.  YEAH, I JUST WANTED TO GET LIKE A YEAH, AN OVERVIEW OF IT WAS IT WAS THAT MY REALLY AND IT GOES QUICK WHEN YOU'RE HAVING FUN IT DEFINITELY FELT LIKE A LONGER 5 MINUTES. SORRY I TOOK TOO LONG WITH MY ANSWERS.  THANK YOU.  ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. COMFORTABLE AROUND? I GOT TO TAKE I HAVE ONE QUESTION ACTUALLY PERFECT TRANSITION AND THEN I WANT TO TURN IT OVER TO PUBLIC TESTIMONY.  YOU KNOW, I ACTUALLY THEN YOU KNOW, WE SPOKE EARLIER THIS YEAR AND I HAD THE OPPORTUNITY LIKE MANY OF MY COLLEAGUES TO GO DOWN TO THE PEOPLE ASK TRANSPORTATION. MY QUESTION IS RIGHT THERE. I MEAN, YOU KNOW, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT HOW MUCH WE'RE SPENDING ON TRANSPORTATION IN GENERAL BUT ESPECIALLY FOR THOSE WHO ARE COMING IN AND OUTSIDE OF THE CITY.  AND THEN I WANT TO REALLY FOCUS ON THAT 12 13% OF OUR STUDENTS WHO ARE UNHOUSED AND I KNOW I MENTIONED THIS TO YOU I MEAN EARLIER THIS YEAR LIKE IT WOULD LITERALLY BE CHEAPER FOR THE CITY OF BOSTON TO HOUSE THESE STUDENTS THAN TO TRANSPORT THEM . I MEAN AND ARE THERE ANY CONVERSATIONS ABOUT MAYBE POTENTIALLY TAKING THAT APPROACH?  I MEAN WE JUST TALKED ABOUT $40,000 PER STUDENT PER YEAR THERE ANY CONVERSATIONS OR HOW CAN WE START THOSE CONVERSATIONS ABOUT HOW CAN WE ACTUALLY HOUSE SOME OF OUR STUDENTS IN THAT OUT WHICH WILL BE A BENEFIT FOR BOTH FOR US, FOR OUR STUDENTS, FOR THE FAMILIES BUT ALSO BE CHEAPER THAN WHAT WE'RE DOING RIGHT NOW ? YEAH, I THINK IT'S I THINK IT'S I'M GLAD YOU'RE ASKING THE QUESTION. I THINK IT'S YOU KNOW, IT'S KIND OF OUTSIDE THE TRANSPORTATION PURVIEW BUT I THINK IT'S A GOOD QUESTION TO BE ASKED. IT SPEAKS TO THE THINGS THAT ARE OUTSIDE OF TRANSPORTATION THAT DO IMPACT TRANSPORTATION AND IT'S WE APPRECIATE THE OPPORTUNITY TO BE HERE TO TO KIND OF BEGIN TO ASK THOSE QUESTIONS AND WE WANT TO CONTINUE BEING PART OF THE CONVERSATION WHERE WE CAN BE SUPPORTIVE OF FINDING SOLUTIONS. I DO THINK THAT IT'S REALLY, REALLY IMPORTANT TO BRING THIS UP AND THESE ARE CONVERSATIONS THAT WE CAN GET STARTED WITHIN VP'S AND WORKING WITH OUR PARTNERS TO SEE WHAT IT'S LIKE FOR TAKING THE UNHOUSED STUDENTS AND MAKING AN IMPACTFUL DIFFERENCE IN WHERE THEY ARE AND HOW WE CAN CONTINUE TO SERVE THEM BEST. ABSOLUTELY.  I THINK IT'S SOMETHING THAT WE ABSOLUTELY SHOULD BE SHOULD THE CONVERSATION SHOULD BE STARTING AND THERE SHOULD BE A SENSE OF URGENCY.  I MEAN I GATHER THAT'S NOT A PURVIEW OF YOU ALL RIGHT. BUT I THINK THAT'S WHAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT FOR ME , HOUSING AS A HUMAN RIGHT OUR STUDENTS ARE OUR MOST VULNERABLE POPULATION AND WE NEED TO BE ABLE TO PROTECT THEM.  AND THEN ON TOP OF THAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT HOW MUCH MONEY WE'RE SPENDING ON TRANSPORTING AND THE CONVERSATION SHOULD BE HOW HOW CAN WE GET THEM HOUSED FOR FAMILY? RIGHT. SO I'M I FOLLOW UP ON THOSE CONVERSATIONS WITH YOU ALL AND WHOEVER ELSE NEEDS TO BE PART OF THOSE CONVERSATIONS. BUT I THINK THE NUMBERS SPEAKS FOR ITSELF WITH THAT. THAT WAS MY MY COLLEAGUES HAD GREAT QUESTIONS. I KNOW IT'S ALREADY BEEN A VERY LONG HEARING SO WE'RE GOING TO WE'RE GOING TO DO A SECOND ROUND OF QUESTIONS FOR THE COLLEAGUES WHO ARE HERE.  BUT BEFORE THEN WE ARE GOING TO DO PUBLIC TESTIMONY. SO I KNOW WE HAVE SOME PEOPLE IN PERSON AND ON ZOOM. SO IF YOU SIGNED UP PLEASE COME UP TO DOWN HERE TO THE FLOOR.  THINK I AM MARISSA FRIEDMAN,  SADIE JASMINE GERVAIS PENGUINS APPLY AND THEN EMMANUEL MARCELLUS AND IF YOU COULD JUST STATE YOUR NAME, YOUR ORGANIZATION AND THEN PLEASE SAY I'M SORRY AND THEN PLEASE KEEP YOUR TESTIMONY UP FOR 2 MINUTES THAT WILL BE APPRECIATED SO YOU CAN GO AHEAD AND GET STARTED. OKAY.  GOOD AFTERNOON EVERYONE. MY NAME IS MARISSA FRIEDMAN AND MAKE SURE TO SPEAK INTO THE MIC CLOSER SO WE CAN MAKE SURE TO HEAR YOU. CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW A LITTLE CLOSER CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW? I THINK THAT OKAY, MY NAME IS MARISSA FRIEDMAN AND I AM THE PARENT OF A CARTER STUDENT,  CALVIN WAITES WHO IS A WHEELCHAIR PATIENT I MEAN A WHEELCHAIR STUDENT. WE RELY HEAVILY ON TRANSPORTATION. I KNOW YOU ALL WERE TALKING A LOT ABOUT THE APP AND A PRIME EXAMPLE OF THE BUS BEING LATE IN THE APP NOT WORKING.  HE WAS JUST AT SCHOOL. THEY WERE TEXTING ME SAYING THE BUS ISN'T THERE.  I'M 40 MINUTES WENT BY THE BUS FINALLY SHOWED UP BUT THEY WERE TRACKING THEY WERE TRYING TO TRACK IT ON THE APP. THEY COULDN'T FIND THE BUS ON THE APP BECAUSE IT HAD A COVERING BUS SO I'M NOT REALLY SURE WHY THAT HAPPENS. ANOTHER THING MY SON AND EVERY OTHER CHILD IN A WHEELCHAIR MOSTLY IS INCONTINENT.  I AM A REGISTERED NURSE SO WE HAVE TO UNDERSTAND THE IMPORTANCE OF A CHILD BEING IN A WHEELCHAIR, INCONTINENT AND SITTING AND OR URINE FOR FOUR AND EXTENDED AMOUNT OF TIME IT CAN CAUSE SKIN BREAKDOWN, IT CAN CAUSE INFECTION, IT CAN CAUSE HOSPITAL IZATION FOR OUR KIDS. ANOTHER THING HE HAS A 1 TO 1 NURSE BECAUSE HE HAS RESPIRATORY ISSUES AND THE BUS BEING LATE CAUSES HIS NURSE HIS NURSE TO BE LATE GOING HOME TO HER OWN FAMILY.  SO IT PUTS THAT PUTS US AT RISK FOR HIM NOT HAVING A 1 TO 1 NURSE. WE KNOW WE'RE IN A SHORTAGE OF NURSES.  ANOTHER THING ONE MORE THING. THIS IS HIS BOOK. HE'S NOT ABLE TO BE HERE WITH ME BUT THIS IS WHO CALVIN IS. HE'S A CHILD WHO LOVES TO BE IN SCHOOL.  HE'S A CHILD WHO LEARNS WHEN HE GOES TO SCHOOL. HE'S A CHILD WHO BENEFITS FROM BEING IN A SCHOOL. HE DOESN'T GET OUT MUCH BECAUSE OF HIS CAPABILITIES BUT SCHOOL IS AN IMPORTANT PLACE FOR HIM TO BE. ONE MORE THING I'M GOING TO SHARE IS JUST LIKE YOU KNOW HIS DRIVER THEY CAN COME IN AS LATE AS AN HOUR LATE, YOU KNOW, PICKING HIM UP FROM SCHOOL. IT'S NOT ACCEPTABLE. IT REALLY ISN'T. AND THEN YOU CALL THE TRANSPORTATION PEOPLE AND YOU'RE ON HOLD FOR 45 MINUTES TO AN HOUR. YOU KNOW THAT 617 NUMBER YOU GAVE IS NOT IT? IT DOESN'T WORK.  I'M NOT A TECHNICAL PERSON. I DON'T LIKE THE APP BUT I DO I REFER TO A PHONE CALL. IT DOESN'T WORK.  WE HAVE TO MAKE CHANGES. WE HAVE TO DO BETTER FOR OUR CHILDREN ESPECIALLY ESPECIALLY MY CHILD AND ANY OTHER CHILD WHO IS IN A POSITION OF NEEDING A WHEELCHAIR ACCESSIBILITY.  OKAY. THANK YOU.  THANK YOU, MAURICE. I APPRECIATE YOU BEING HERE AND SHARING OUR STORY. THANK YOU.  YOU CAN COME UP WITH YOUR STATE, YOUR NAME AND YOU'RE GOING TO SAY EVENING.  MY NAME IS FADI JASMINE. I AM THE PRESIDENT OF THE BUS MONITOR LOCAL 2936 I'M HERE TO MAKE SURE BUS MONITORS DON'T GET BLAMED.  OKAY. I LIVE IN DORCHESTER.  BEING A BUS MONITOR IS NOT AN EASY JOB NOW WE ARE MAKING 1977 AN HOUR.  THIS IS UNLIVABLE WAGES TO MAKE 40 HOURS YOU HAVE TO START AT 5 A.M. IN THE MORNING, FINISHED AT 9 A.M. AND START BACK AT 1 P.M. TO 5 P.M. AND IN ORDER TO DO OVERTIME YOU HAVE TO GET OFF YOUR BUS AFTER 6 P.M.. ALSO WE CANNOT MAKE A DECENT PAYCHECK EVERY TWO WEEKS SO WE ARE STEADY WORKERS AND WE ARE TREATED THE WORSE.  WE HAVE NO RESPECT, WE ARE NOT HONORED FOR THE JOB THAT WE DO . WE ARE NOT PROPERLY TRAINED. THEY ARE HIRING PEOPLE AND THE TRAINING IS LIKE OUR ORIENTATION. WE HAVE MORE MONITORS ON ADMINISTRATIVE LEAVE SUSPENSION THAN WE HAVE ON BUSSES. THEY ARE ALSO FORCING ONE MONITOR TO MONITOR 4 TO 5 MONITOR REQUIRE KIDS PLUS A 1 TO 1 AND SOMETIMES 212 ONCE AND IT'S NOT FAIR TO THE MONITOR ALSO WE HAVE A VERY LARGE CULTURAL LEAGUE DIVERSE STUDENT POPULATION RIDING BUSSES AND OUR FIRST DEFENSE IS OUR SAFETY FOR STUDENTS TO AND FROM SCHOOL THEY HAVE A LARGE RANGE OF BEHAVIOR ISSUES AND AUTISM SPECTRUM HAS TRANSPORTATION NEED TO HIRE DIVERSE GROUP OF PEOPLE WHO CAN COMMUNICATE WITH STUDENTS, PARENTS AND STAFF RIGHT INCIDENT REPORT AND UNDERSTAND THAT EFFICIENTLY WHAT OUR STUDENTS NEED AND TO GET THROUGH OUR DAY.  WE ARE THE FIRST PEOPLE THAT THE STUDENT THREE IN THE MORNING AND WE SET A PIECE FOR GOOD RIGHT AND A GOOD DAY IN SCHOOL SECONDLY AT THE END OF THE DAY MONITORS WHO ARE NOT PROPERLY TRAINED FOR THEIR POSITION ARE BEING PUT ON ADMINISTRATIVE LEAVE FOR NEGLECT CHARGES ETC. BECAUSE PARENTS AND SCHOOLS COMPLAIN RESULTING IN DISCIPLINARY ACTION OR TERMINATION.  AS PRESIDENT OF BUS MONITOR BUS ATTENDANTS UNION WE ARE ACTING FOR EXTENSIVE ORIENTATION AND SERIOUS OF VIDEOS HANDS ON TRAINING FOR NEW HIRES EXTENDED TO OUR MANDATORY TRAINING TWICE A YEAR AND WE NEED CPR SEIZURE AND EPIPEN WHEELCHAIR BUS TRAINING AND HOW TO DEFEND OURSELVES AGAINST STUDENTS WHO HAVE UNMANAGEABLE BEHAVIOR ISSUES SO EVERYONE CAN BE IN A SAFE SPACE. THANK YOU FOR LISTENING TO OUR CONCERT. YOU WANT ME TO GO WITH THIS ONE? SHE'S GOING TO GIVE ME HER 2 MINUTES. OKAY. CALVERT COVID WORKPLACE RESTRICTION ARE OVER BUT THE PARTON PUBLIC SCHOOLS BED CABIN MONITORS ARE STILL OUTSIDE SITTING IN A TENT WITH NO HEAT AND RATS RUNNING IN AND OUT OF THE TENT WHEN WAITING FOR WORK TO TRANSPORT STUDENTS TO AND FROM SCHOOL. THIS WORK ENVIRONMENT IS CAUSING MONITORS TO PASSING AWAY FROM SITTING OUTSIDE IN THE COLD FROM 4:30 A.M. TO 4:30 P.M. IN A TENT AND NOT BEING ABLE TO AFFORD HEALTH INSURANCE TO PAY AT THE RATE OF 1977 FROM 2797 X BASIC LIVE AT 2797 WE WAS GETTING PAID BY THE RENT BUT EQUIVALENT LEAVE FEDERAL LAW A RENT IS SUPPOSED TO LAST 45 MINUTES TO ONE HOUR SO BASICALLY WE WERE MAKING IT WE WERE ALSO GETTING EXCEPTION TIME THAT STOPPED SEVEN YEARS AGO WHEN A NEW TRANSPORTATION DIRECTOR AND EVERYONE ELSE CAME IN WHAT THE TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT IS NOT PROVIDING MONITORS FOR EACH 1 TO 1 STUDENT WHICH IS A VIOLATION OF STUDENT'S IEP.  PRIVATE TRANSPORTATION VENDORS MONITORS ARE PAID MORE MONEY THAN PPS MONITORS AT $25 AN HOUR FOR TRANSPORTING STUDENTS THAT LIVE IN BOSTON TO THEIR SCHOOL THAT ARE BOSTON AND MONITORS ONLY HAVE ONE STUDENT FOR EACH VENDOR ROW MONITORS ARE NOT BEING TRAINED, SUPERVISORS ARE NOT EXPLAINING TO THE MONITORS WHAT THE STUDENT NEEDS AND WHICH IS CAUSING SCHOOL IN PARIS TO FILE 51/8 ON MONITORS BECAUSE THEY ARE NOT TRAINED PROPERLY. AND THANK YOU.  THAT IS MY VICE PRESIDENT GIOVANI BURGOS. THANK YOU.  THANK YOU SO MUCH, SADIA AND JOHN DELANEY. APPRECIATE YOU BEING HERE AND SHOUT OUT TO ALL OUR MONITORS HERE IN THE CITY OF BOSTON WHO DO AMAZING WORK AND YOU ALL DESERVE THAT RESPECT AND DIGNITY THAT YOU'RE ASKING FOR SO I'M SORRY . NEXT UP WE HAVE EMMANUEL MARSALIS AND THEN WE'RE GOING TO GO OVER TO ZOOM.  SO EMMANUEL, YOU HAVE 2 MINUTES. GOOD AFTERNOON.  THANK YOU, MR CHAIRMAN. AND THANK YOU TO EVERYBODY FOR HOSTING THIS THESE VERY IMPORTANT.  I HAD A STATEMENT PREPARED BUT YOU KNOW WHAT I STARTED TO LISTEN TO MR FLYNN TALK. I SAID THIS OFF THE WINDOW. I HAVE A CHILD WITH DISABILITY MYSELF. I'M THE PRESIDENT OF THE SCHOOL BUS DRIVERS UNION. I SPEAK ON BEHALF OF THE DRIVERS BUT ALSO AS A PARENT WHAT A CHILD WITH DISABILITY. SO ME AND THEN WE GO A COUPLE OF YEARS WE'VE BEEN TALKING OFTEN VERY OFTEN WE DON'T TALK THAT MUCH ANYMORE BECAUSE WE IN POSITION THAT YOU CAN SEE SOMETIMES ACROSS FROM ONE ANOTHER. BUT OUR GOAL AS A BOSTON SCHOOL BUS DRIVERS UNION REALLY IS TO WORK TO MAKE THINGS BETTER TO MAKE SURE THAT THE KIDS ARE SAFE ON THE BUS. LIKE I SAID MYSELF, MY KIDS RIDE ON THE BUS AND I HAVE NIECES AND NEPHEW THAT YOU KNOW, RIDE ON THE BUS. SO WE WANT THINGS TO BE DONE SAFELY.  SINCE I TOOK POWER IN JUNE, THE BEGINNING OF JUNE, I'VE BEEN TRYING MY BEST TO WORK NOT ONLY WOULD BE PEACE BUT ALSO WITH THE BUS COMPANY TO MAKE SURE THAT THINGS ARE DONE IN THE PROPER WAY. BUT WE ARE FACING A HUGE PROBLEM. WE ARE FACING CUT, CUT, CUT AND MORE CUTS.  THAT'S THE PROBLEM RIGHT NOW. WE CAN EASILY STAND HERE AND JUST BLAME THE PEOPLE ARE BIPS OR TRANSPORTATION FOR EXAMPLE FOR KIDS NOT GETTING TO SCHOOL ON TIME. MAYBE I WILL ATTEND ANOTHER HEARING.  BUT TO BE HONEST WITH YOU, LIKE I SAID I STARTED TO REFLECT WHEN I LISTEN TO MR FLYNN TALKING ABOUT THE KIDS WITH DISABILITIES AND MISSING CLASSES AND STUFF LIKE THAT. MY SON IS MISSING CLASSES. HE HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH TRANSPORTATION FOR EXAMPLE.  HAS TO DO WITH LACK OF STAFFING OR WHAT?  THE MATTER OF SCHOOL FOR EXAMPLE. SO ONE THING THAT I WILL TOUCH THEN CAN TALK ABOUT OR ANYBODY FROM TRANSPORTATION THEY CAN TALK ABOUT THE 90%, 91%, 95% ON TIME PERFORMANCE. BUT YOU'RE GOING TO HEAR IT FROM THE FIRST SCHOOL IN THE MORNING AND FROM THE FIRST SCHOOL IN THE AFTERNOON. IT'S ONLY BECAUSE WE WILL WORK WITH THEM AND TRY TO FORCE THEM TO ALLOCATE MORE TIME INTO THOSE RUNS BECAUSE DRIVE DRIVER ENOUGH TIME REALLY TO LEAVE THE YARD AND GET TO THE FIRST PICK UP ON TIME BUT MORE OF THE PROBLEM THAT YOU WILL PERHAPS YOU DON'T HEAR ABOUT BUT OFTEN TRIP TO IN THE MORNING UNTIL TRIP THREE AND IN THE AFTERNOON SAME THING BECAUSE SIMPLY BECAUSE THOSE RUN DON'T DO NOT HAVE ADEQUATE TIME BETWEEN STOPS FOR EXAMPLE A HUGE PROBLEM IS FACING AND WE ADDRESS IT WITH THEM AND WE ADDRESS WITH THE COMPANY ALSO DRIVERS ON IT ALL THE TIME. AND THE FUNNY THING IS WE ARE THE ONE BEING BLAMED FOR EVERYTHING. WE GOT DRIVERS MORE DRIVERS GETTING ASSAULTED ON BUSSES BECAUSE PARENTS ARE JUST MAD. AND SOMETIMES AS A PARENT I GOT MY TWO WHEN MY SON'S BUS IS NOT ARRIVING ON TIME. BUT GUESS WHAT? I HAVE TO BE MORE TOLERANT BECAUSE I UNDERSTAND THE SYSTEM. I KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON. SO I DON'T GO YELL OR GET OUT OF MY DRIVER BECAUSE I KNOW I'M PART OF OF THE SAME SURROUNDING . BUT THOSE PARENTS TOLD THAT THEY DON'T KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON. WHEN YOU GET TO A STUFF FOR EXAMPLE AND YOU CALLING A 50 THIS ONE BY THE BUS COMPANY AND YOU'RE BEING TOLD YOU CANNOT MOVE, DON'T GO ANYWHERE THEY ARE TRYING TO WHICH A PARENT MAYBE A PARENT IS NOT THERE AND YOU ARE THERE 20 MINUTES, 30 MINUTES AND HALF TIME, 45 MINUTES. NO, NOT NEXT PARENT THE FOLLOWING PARENT ALL THOSE KIDS ARE GOING TO BE LATE AND THEY'RE MAD AT YOU. THEY DON'T KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON. BUT EVERYBODY IS TRYING TO BLAME THE DRIVERS. IT'S ALWAYS THE DRIVER'S FAULT WHEN YOU GET TO A SCHOOL YOU DROPPING OFF IN THE MORNING YOU'RE BEING TOLD THE TOP OF THAT 715 YOU HAVE TO WAIT 715 TO 725 BECAUSE YOU CANNOT LET THOSE KIDS OUT WITH NOBODY TO RECEIVE THE CHILD. BUT GUESS WHAT? YOU'RE BEING DROPPED YOU DROPPING OFF AT 715 TO 725 AND YOU HAVE A PICKUP AT 716 OR 717 YOU ALREADY LATE WHILE YOU'RE WAITING AT A SCHOOL.  SO WE'RE BEING SET TO FAIL. THAT'S THE PROBLEM RIGHT NOW WE'RE BEING SET UP TO FAIL BUT A LOT OF TIME WE'RE TRYING TO TALK BUT PEOPLE ARE NOT LISTENING AND THAT'S WHY I APPRECIATE SOME OF YOU COUNTY COUNCIL MEN AND WOMEN THAT I'VE SPOKEN TO REACH OUT AND I APPRECIATE YOU TRYING TO GET TO THE BOTTOM OF IT. WE ARE NOT THE PROBLEM. WE ARE NOT TRYING TO CAUSE A PROBLEM. YES, THE BUS DRIVERS ARE HERE TO WORK AND MAKE A PAYCHECK.  A LOT OF TIMES YOU HEAR THAT THERE IS NO BUS DRIVER. THERE IS THE BUS DRIVER. I HEARD THE COUNCILMAN ASK THE QUESTION DO YOU NEED MORE BUS? AND THIS ONE SAID NO, YOU DO HAVE A BUS PROBLEM. IT'S NOT MORE BUS. THE FLEET IS OLD. ON THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL US TWO ARE STOOD THERE AT THE YARD WHEN THE GENERAL GENERAL MANAGER 48 BUSSES WAS SITTING IN THE YARD.  48 BUSSES AND YOU ARE OVER 2225 DRIVERS WHO COULD NOT GET OUT BECAUSE THEY DID NOT HAVE A BUS. SO YES, YOU HAVE A BUSSING ISSUE MAYBE IT'S MAINTENANCE.  SO THE WHOLE THING IS ABOUT OPERATION. OPERATION NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED . YES, WE DO BETTER AND DEFINITELY DEFINITELY THE COMPANY THAT WE WORK FOR NEEDS TO DO BETTER BECAUSE THAT COMPANY THAT BIPS SO POORLY SPEAK ABOUT THAT COMPANY. THE ONLY THING THAT MATTERS TO THEM IT'S TO AFFECT THE BOTTOM LINE OF THE UNION AND THAT'S NOT FAIR.  BUT THEN AGAIN I'M NOT COMPLAINING BECAUSE WE'RE GOING TO FIGHT THAT FIGHT BUT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT COURT COSTS. COURT AND WE HAVE AN OPERATION FAILURE OR AN OPERATION FAILURE . IT'S NOT ABOUT THE BUS DRIVERS. THE BOY DRIVERS ARE OUT OF WORK . A BIG DEAL IS MADE ABOUT THE APP. LET ME TELL YOU SOMETHING I TRAIN FOR 5 MINUTES ON THE ZOOM OUT 5 MINUTES. SOME DRIVERS MIGHT TAKE THEM 1015 MINUTES AND MAYBE SOME MIGHT HAVE 1%. IT WILL TAKE THEM HALF AN HOUR. IT'S NOT ROCKET SCIENCE. THAT'S NOT THE ISSUE. THAT'S NOT THE PROBLEM KNOWING WHAT TO DO ON THE ZOOM APP. BUT IF YOU ARE GIVING ONE MINUTE TO GO PICK UP YOUR CHILD, YOU GOT ANOTHER MINUTE TO GET TO THE NEXT STOP. THAT'S HOW SOME OF THE BRUNT OF BUILT AND NOW YOU'VE GOT FOUR OR FIVE KIDS. IF IT IS A CORNER TO CORNER STOP YOU ARE CHECKING ON TO THE APP TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY ARE ON YOU ALREADY LINK TO THE NEXT STOP AND YOU'RE BEING TAUGHT IF YOU ARE THE CORNER STOP YOU'VE GOT 15 TO 20 KIDS. YOU DON'T HAVE TO DO THAT AND NO ONE HERE CAN SAY THAT I'M LYING BECAUSE YOU CAN CHECK PRESS A BUTTON INSTEAD SAID YOU HAVE A BOTTLE OF BUTTLOAD OF KIDS GETTING ON THE BUS. YOU DON'T HAVE TO CHECK THEM ONE BY ONE AT THE SCHOOL IN THE AFTERNOON. IT'S A NIGHTMARE BECAUSE PRINCIPALS ARE BUS COORDINATOR DO NOT ALLOW DRIVERS TO CHECK WHO IS GETTING ON THOSE BUSSES ONE BY ONE LIKE WE ARE BEING EXTRA.  IT'S NOT OUR FAULT THAT BRING THE KIDS. THEY SAID THEY GOT TO GO PRINCIPALS MAD AT YOU AND GUESS WHAT? ANYBODY THAT CALLED PARENT TEACHERS PRINCIPAL YOU NAME IT ANYBODY GOT IS AT FAULT.  SO WHAT ARE YOU SUPPOSED TO DO AS A DRIVER? WHAT I WAS SUPPOSED TO DO YOU DO THE BEST THAT YOU CAN ADMIT. YOU TRANSPORT THE KIDS HOME. LISTEN, I WANT TO SAY THIS. NO ONE NO ONE CARES ABOUT THOSE KIDS ON THE BUSSES MORE THAN THE BUS DRIVERS BECAUSE THEY ARE ALL KIDS. YEAH, ALL KIDS.  A LOT OF US GOT KIDS ON THE BUS. I HAVE A KIDS WITH AUTISM ON THE BUS AND I APPLAUD MY DRIVERS WHAT TO DO A LOT OF TIME IN THEM THEN? CAN'T SAY THAT I'M LYING. WE TALK BACK, WE TALK BACK AND FORTH, BACK AND FORTH. BEFORE HE WAS A DIRECTOR ABOUT ISSUE WITH BUSSES WITH MY SON'S BUS BEING ALL THE TIME WE TALK ALL THE TIME I WAS ABOUT TO CALL HIM I TRIED TO GIVE HIM THIS ONE. SO THE ISSUE IS NOT THE BUS DRIVERS. IT'S AN OPERATION FAILURE AND WE NEED TO ADDRESS THAT AT EVERY LEVEL. THANK YOU VERY MUCH.  THANK YOU. HEY, MATT LAUER, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR SHARING AND SHOUT OUT TO ALL OF OUR BUS DRIVERS AND WE APPRECIATE YOUR ROLE AS A PRESIDENT AS WELL.  WITH THAT WE'RE GOING TO DO A SECOND ROUND OF QUESTIONS FOR MY COLLEAGUES STARTING WITH THE LEAD SPONSORS.  COUNSELOR FLYNN, YOU HAVE THE FLOOR.  THANK YOU. THANK YOU, MR CHAIR. I'M SORRY I WASN'T AWARE WE HAVE I'M SORRY WE HAVE TO MOVE. I'M SO SORRY ABOUT THAT. WE DO HAVE TWO VIRTUAL SILENCE FOR PUBLIC TESTIMONY. WE'RE GOING TO MOVE TO THEM VERY QUICKLY. I'M STARTING I THINK WE STARTED WITH JUST SHERYL BACHMAN AND THEN WE HAVE CHRIS WILEY ALSO ON THE LINE.  SO IF YOU COULD JUST UNMUTE YOURSELF, INTRODUCE YOURSELF AND THEN YOU HAVE 2 MINUTES. THANK YOU SO MUCH.  HELLO, MY NAME IS SHERYL BUCKMAN.  I'M A PARENT TO A SIXTH GRADER WHO WHO IS AUTISTIC AND ATTENDS THE DEVON SCHOOL IN DORCHESTER. I'M A LONG TIME RESIDENT SOUTH BOSTON. I'M HERE ABOUT THE ONGOING BUZZ AND SAFETY ISSUES THIS YEAR. WE ALL KNOW GOT OFF TO A ROCKY START WITH THE BUSING. I'VE ADDRESSED THIS ONGOING BUSING AND SAFETY ISSUE NOT THAT I'VE HEARD THAT I'VE JUST PERSONALLY FACED BUT I'VE ALSO DONE FOR OTHER PARENTS AS WELL WITH VARIOUS MEDIA AND NEWSPAPER OUTLETS.  THE TIMELINE THAT I HAVE INCLUDED IS JUST A SNAPSHOT OF WHAT I FACE WITH MY CHILD'S BUS.  NO PARENT SHOULD HEAR THESE WORDS AUDIO FROM THEIR CHILD. MOM, I'M OKAY WITH BEING LATE. THEY WILL JUST MARK MATURITY. MY SON SAID THIS ON THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL. THANKS TO A NEIGHBOR SHE DROVE US TO DROP HIM OFF. HE WAS OVER 25 MINUTES LATE. THIS IS JUST THE TIP OF THE ICEBERG.  ON TWO OCCASIONS MY SON BOARDED HIS BUS, MISSED SCHOOL AND WAS MARKED A NO SHOW. THIS IS IRIS POSSIBLE AND UNACCEPTABLE. I'VE REPORTED IT TO TRANSPORTATION AND WAS TOLD THE REASON WAS THE BUS HAD MECHANICAL ISSUES.  EXPLAIN TO ME WHY A BUS WITH PROBLEMS IS ON THE ROAD. SHOULDN'T A COVERING BUS TAKE OVER? ARE WE GOING TO STAND BY AND WAIT WHILE AN ACCIDENT OR WORSE HAPPENS? WE WE MUST HOLD BP'S ACCOUNTABLE AND FIX THESE PROBLEMS BEFORE IT BECOMES MORE PROBLEMATIC DOWN THE LINE. I'VE BEGUN TO LOSE MY FAITH AND CONFIDENCE IN BP AS TRANSPORTATION FOR MANY REASONS AND OTHERS THAT ARE NOT MENTIONED IN MY TESTIMONY AND SOME THAT ARE JUST TOO CLOSE TO THE HEART. I DON'T WANT ANY OTHER PARENT TO HAVE TO ENDURE ALL THE HEARTACHE AND PAIN THAT I HAVE GONE THROUGH THE YEARS WITH BP AS TRANSPORTATION.  I DON'T WANT TO GET THAT WORST CASE SCENARIO PHONE CALL ABOUT MY SONS BUT WE MUST DO BETTER. THANK YOU.  THANK YOU, CHERYL. CHRIS WORLEY. IF YOU'RE ON ZOOM YOU CAN TELL ME YOURSELF AND THEN YOU'LL HAVE 2 MINUTES.  YOU GUYS HEAR ME ? YEP.  GREAT. THANK YOU. GOOD AFTERNOON.  MY NAME IS CHRIS WALLACE. I'D LIKE TO THANK COUNCILORS FLYNN AND MURPHY FOR HOLDING THIS HEARING, HAVING THIS PLATFORM TO PROVIDE FEEDBACK ON OUR EXPERIENCE WITH BEST TRANSPORTATION IS GREATLY APPRECIATED. MY FAMILY AND I LIVE IN BEACON HILL AND OUR TWO DAUGHTERS ARE IN K-2 IN SECOND GRADE AT THE WARREN PRESCOTT SCHOOL IN CHARLESTOWN. SINCE JOINING THE WARREN PRESCOTT COMMUNITY OVER TWO YEARS AGO, OUR EXPERIENCE WITH TRANSPORTATION HAS BEEN CHALLENGING TO SAY THE LEAST. IN PREVIOUS YEARS WE SEEMED TO GO FOR SEVERAL MONTHS WITH BUS OPERATIONS RUNNING SMOOTHLY ONLY TO THEN ENCOUNTER WEEKS ON END OF BUS TIMES RUNNING ANYWHERE FROM 15 MINUTES TO OVER AN HOUR LATE. I WOULD ALSO ESTIMATE THAT OVER THE LAST TWO YEARS THERE HAVE BEEN ABOUT 20 INSTANCES WHERE EITHER THE MORNING OR AFTERNOON BOSS HAS FAILED TO SHOW UP AT ALL. THIS YEAR'S ISSUES FEEL FEEL FUNDAMENTALLY WORSE. THE BUS DID NOT SHOW UP ON THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL WHICH REPRESENT OUR DAUGHTER'S FIRST DAY OF KINDERGARTEN FEELS BEYOND UNCONSCIONABLE TO ME . SINCE THAT TIME WE'VE HAD A BUS EACH MORNING AND AFTERNOON THE ARRIVAL TIMES HAVE BEEN DEPLORABLE. THE MORNING BUS HAS ARRIVED AT SCHOOL THE START OF THE SCHOOL DAY OVER 75% OF DAYS THIS YEAR. THE AFTERNOON BUS CONSISTENTLY LEAVES WARREN PRESCOTT 25 TO 30 MINUTES AFTER THE CONCLUSION OF THE SCHOOL DAY AND AFTER A CIRCUITOUS 35 TO 40 MINUTE RIDE HAS ARRIVED BACK AT OUR BUS STOP LATE. 100% OF SCHOOL DAYS THIS YEAR WITH AN AVERAGE ARRIVAL TIME ANYWHERE BETWEEN 15 TO 30 MINUTES LATE 100% OF TIME LITERALLY NEVER MADE IT ON TIME. AUDIENCE HALTS INJURY THE ZOOM APP IS OFTEN INACCURATE FOR THE MORNING RIDE AND CITES ARRIVAL TIMES AT LEAST 5 MINUTES PRIOR TO ACTUAL ARRIVAL AT SCHOOL WHICH PROVIDES AN INACCURATE DATA SET FOR THE NUMBER OF DAYS OUR CHILDREN ARE DELIVERED TO SCHOOL LATE. THE AMOUNT OF TIME AND ENERGY DEVOTED NOT ONLY TO WRITING EMAILS TO BPP'S TRANSPORTATION ALSO SPENT TRYING TO STRATEGIZE WITH MY WIFE AND OTHER NEIGHBORHOOD FAMILIES ABOUT HOW TO REMEDY THIS PROBLEM FOR OUR CHILDREN IS TRULY MIND NUMBING . WHY MY CHILDREN'S PEERS WITH THE ABILITY TO WALK TO AND FROM SCHOOL HAVE BEEN HOME AT THE CONCLUSION OF THE SCHOOL DAY FOR OVER AN HOUR.  OUR KIDS ARE USUALLY STILL ON THE BUS. WHAT MAKES THIS FURTHER INFLAMMATORY IS THAT WE HAVE NO SCHOOL IN BEACON HILL.  OUR ONLY OPTION IS TO BUS OUR CHILDREN TO ANOTHER PART OF THE CITY AND AT PRESENT SUBJECT THEM TO THIS VERY, VERY DISAPPOINTING TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM. OUR CHILDREN DESERVE FAR BETTER THAN THIS. THAT'S ALL.  THANK YOU SO MUCH, CHRIS AND THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO DECIDED WHO WANT TO GO TO PUBLIC TESTIFIED FOR ON BEHALF. REALLY APPRECIATE YOU ALL BEING HERE. WE'RE NOT GOING TO MOVE FORWARD WITH OUR SECOND ROUND OF QUESTIONS STARTING WITH THE SPONSORS AND THEN MY COLLEAGUES IN ORDER OF ARRIVAL. COUNCILOR FLYNN, YOU HAVE THE FLOOR.  THANK YOU, MR CHAIR. AND AGAIN I WANT TO SAY THANK YOU TO THE TEAM THAT'S HERE FOR THE WORK YOU'RE DOING.  I KNOW IT'S A VERY DIFFICULT AND CHALLENGING WORK AND THERE'S A LOT OF MAJOR PROBLEMS BUT I DO WANT TO SAY THANK YOU FOR FOR TRYING THIS GENTLEMAN ON THE ON THE ON THE VIDEO HIS HIS DAUGHTER WAS LATE RETURNING HOME FROM SCHOOL 100% OF THE TIME. ENRIQUE PEPEN WAS AT COUNCIL PEP AND WAS TALKING ABOUT A PERSON IN A SUIT AND HE KNOWS THAT WAS LATE 19 TIMES OUT OF 45 DAYS WHICH IS ALMOST AN HOUR 40% 45%. IS THERE A DISCONNECT BETWEEN THE TESTIMONY, THE STATS THAT YOU HAVE AND THE INFORMATION WE'RE RECEIVING FROM THE PUBLIC ? YOU ARE SAYING THAT THINGS ARE IMPROVING THAT WERE CLOSE TO 90% BUT THE PUBLIC IS NOT SAYING THAT THE PUBLIC IS TELLING US THAT THE SYSTEM IS NOT WORKING, THAT THE APP IS NOT WORKING AND THAT SEEMS LIKE THERE'S A MAJOR DISCONNECT AND MAY INACCURATE TO DESCRIBE IT THAT WAY. I DON'T THINK YOU'RE NECESSARILY INACCURATE TO DESCRIBE IT THAT WAY. I THINK WHAT I ALWAYS COME BACK TO AND WHAT SCHOOL COMMITTEE CHAIR ROBINSON ALWAYS REMINDS US OF IS EVEN AT 95% ON TIME PERFORMANCE THAT'S A THOUSAND STUDENTS ARRIVING LATE EVERY SINGLE DAY AND SO YES, THINGS HAVE BEEN STEADILY GETTING BETTER BUT EACH WEEK I'M AT AT 90. SORRY , GO AHEAD. NO, I'M SORRY . I SHOULD I SHOULD LET YOU FINISH. I'M SORRY . BUT YOU KNOW, AT THE 90 92% THAT WE'RE AT RIGHT NOW, THAT'S 2000 STUDENTS EVERY SINGLE DAY WHO ARE STILL NOT ARRIVING TO SCHOOL ON TIME. AND SO, YOU KNOW, I THINK WHILE WE HEAR, YOU KNOW, MANY FAMILIES WHO AREN'T NECESSARILY AS VOCAL BECAUSE WHY SHOULD THEY BE YOU KNOW, THEY EXPECT THE BUS TO ARRIVE ON TIME AND THEIR BUS IS ARRIVING ON TIME AND YOU KNOW, WE HEAR SOME POSITIVE FEEDBACK FROM THEM.  WHAT WE'RE STILL HEARING FROM MANY FAMILIES AND TO MANY FAMILIES IS THIS IS NOT WORKING FOR ME BECAUSE IT'S NOT BECAUSE THERE ARE STILL SO MANY FAMILIES OUT THERE WHO ARE HAVING A LATE BUS EVERY SINGLE DAY AND THAT'S WHY, YOU KNOW, WE WE DID FEEL THE NEED TO DO SOMETHING DRAMATIC. YOU KNOW, MAKE A SYSTEM WIDE CHANGE THIS YEAR BECAUSE WE'VE BEEN STUCK AT 90 FOR FOUR YEARS NOW AND THAT'S IT'S NOT GOOD ENOUGH AND YOU KNOW, WE'RE NOT GOING TO STOP UNTIL WE GET TO 99% 100% EVERY SINGLE DAY. BUT WE'RE NOT THERE. THE TESTIMONY WE'RE RECEIVING IS THAT PEOPLE ARE GETTING THEIR BUS ON TIME 50% OF THE TIME. 60% OF THE TIME. THIS THIS PARENT HERE HAS DAUGHTERS OF LATE LATE RETURNING HOME 100% OF THE TIME. SOMEONE IN HIGH PARK 50% OF THE TIME. THOSE ARE THE NUMBERS THAT ARE REALLY DISCOURAGING THE THE THE THE PARENT TALKING ABOUT HER AT THE AT THE CARTER SCHOOL. I MEAN THE IMPACT THE THE LATE IN THE BUS DRIVERS THEY DO A TREMENDOUS JOB THE BUS MONITORS THEY DO A TREMENDOUS JOB BUT WHAT ABOUT HER SON THAT NEEDS THOSE SERVICES AGAIN THAT ARE THAT ARE CRITICAL FOR THAT CHILD SUCH AS SUCH AS THERAPY, SPEECH THERAPY, PHYSICAL THERAPY, VISUAL ASSISTANCE SO WHATEVER IT MIGHT BE AND THEY'RE NOT GETTING THOSE SERVICES. THE CHILD GOES BACK TO THE PARENT OR GUARDIAN AND THE CHILD IS STILL NOT HAVING THE SERVICES OR THE PROGRAMING BUT WE'RE NOT PROVIDING THAT CHILD WITH THE SERVICES THAT THEY NEED AND IT'S DISCOURAGING BECAUSE THE PARENT EXPECTS AND DEMANDS AND RIGHTFULLY SO THAT THEIR CHILD RECEIVE THESE SERVICES THAT THEY'RE ENTITLED TO BY LAW. BUT THEY'RE NOT THEY'RE NOT RECEIVING IT BUT THAT'S WHY WE'RE HERE IS FOR FOR PARENTS THAT AREN'T ABLE TO ADVOCATE CITY BUREAUCRACY THAT'S WHY I'M HERE AND ADVOCATE FOR THEM. BUT WHAT DO WE HOW ARE WE GOING TO IMPROVE IT FOR STUDENTS DISABILITIES?  I JUST CAN'T ACCEPT THAT WE CAN'T WE CAN'T HAVE 100% FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES. WE SPEND $171 MILLION. YEAH, I NO, I'M I'M IN AGREEMENT WITH YOU COUNSELOR, THAT YOU KNOW THE STRATEGIES THAT WE'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT WE'RE GOING TO CONTINUE TO YOU KNOW, TO DO THAT WORK. WE'RE GOING TO CONTINUE TO SHOW UP EVERY SINGLE DAY. I THINK IT'S IT'S INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT TO HEAR FROM FAMILIES WHO ARE HAVING THESE EXPERIENCES.  YOU KNOW, IT REMINDS US OF WHY WE WERE HERE EVERY DAY. IT'S IT'S NOT EASY BUT THIS IS VERY MEANINGFUL AND IMPORTANT WORK AND I THINK WE HAVE TO WE HAVE TO KEEP GOING. WE HAVE TO KEEP PUSHING. NOW THESE UNION OFFICIALS, THEY THEY HAVE A DIFFERENT STORY ABOUT THEM, ABOUT THE APP, ABOUT WHAT'S HAPPENING.  THEY DON'T THINK THE APP IS WORKING. THIS GENTLEMAN HERE DIDN'T THINK THE APP IS WORKING. THEY THEY EXPRESS SEVERE PROBLEMS WITH THE TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM.  THEY ARE THEY INACCURATE IN DESCRIBING THE SYSTEM TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM WITH MAJOR PROBLEMS AND YOU'RE DESCRIBING IT AS AS GOING AS DOING WELL.  THEY THINK THAT BOTH ARE TRUE. WE ARE SEEING IMPROVEMENT EACH WEEK. WE ARE WORKING TO GET BETTER EACH WEEK AND SEEING THE RESULTS OF THAT AND WE'RE ALSO FAR FROM WHERE WE NEED TO BE. I THINK THAT YOU KNOW, PRESIDENT MARSALIS ONE OF THE THINGS HE TALKED ABOUT IS YOU KNOW, SIMILAR TO WHAT I WAS TALKING ABOUT EARLIER WHERE THE THE FIRST TRIP OF THE MORNING AND AFTERNOON IS CONSISTENTLY RUNNING 95, 96, 97% ON TIME.  THE SECOND AND THIRD TRIPS ARE NOT. THERE'S A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT FACTORS GOING INTO THAT, RIGHT. SOME OF IT IS REROUTING ADJUSTMENTS THAT NEED TO BE MADE. SOME OF IT IS THE TRAFFIC THAT PICKS UP AT 8:00, 830 EVERY SINGLE DAY. SOME OF IT IS THE FACT THAT WE HAVE THE GREATEST NUMBER OF OUR SCHOOLS AT 830 AND OUR OUR SYSTEM IS SIMPLY OVERCAPACITY AT THAT TIME WHICH IS WHY SOMETIMES WE DO SEE ROUTES THAT YOU KNOW, HAVE 715 DROP OFF AND THEN 717 THE FIRST PICK UP FOR THE NEXT ROUTE AND THAT'S YOU KNOW WE DON'T IT'S NOT IDEAL. THAT'S OBVIOUSLY AN UNJUST MEANT WE NEED TO MAKE BUT YOU KNOW WE JUST HAVE YOU KNOW HAVE A LIMITED SET OF RESOURCES AND AND WE YOU KNOW WE DO EVERYTHING WE CAN TO ROOT EFFICIENTLY WITHIN THAT. SO WE HAVE TO CONTINUE TO LOOK AT THE RIDERSHIP BUT WE HAVE TO, YOU KNOW, MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE BEING EFFICIENT WITH OUR RESOURCES. WE HAVE TO CONTINUE PUSHING ON ON ALL ASPECTS OF THIS. THERE'S NO SILVER BULLET HERE.  SO I APPRECIATE THAT WE'RE HERE HAVING THIS CONVERSATION AND WE'RE GOING TO KEEP HAVING IT.  THERE'S THIS MANY STREETS IN BOSTON, MAJOR STREETS I WENT DOWN FROM TWO LANES TO ONE LANE AS YOU KNOW THREE LANES TO TWO LANES, TWO LANES TO ONE LANE BUSSES ARE STUCK IN TRAFFIC. IT'S NOT THE FAULT OF THE BUS DRIVER OR THE BUS MONITOR. I DON'T EVEN THINK IT'S THE FAULT OF THE IN THAT CASE OF THE OF THE TRANSPORTATION TEAM. BUT IS THAT A SIGNIFICANT PROBLEM THAT BUSSES ARE STUCK IN TRAFFIC IN A ONE LANE MAJOR STREET IN BOSTON AND THERE'S BACKUP TRAFFIC WHAT 20 MINUTES TO GET DOWN TO THE NEXT TWO BLOCKS IS THAT ARE WE SEEING THOSE ISSUES?  I THINK THAT YEAH WE SEE A YOU KNOW IT CAN BE THAT SOMETIMES IT CAN BE CONSTRUCTION. I THINK ONE OF THE THINGS IN PARTICULAR THAT WE'VE SEEN IS THAT TRAFFIC PATTERNS HAVE CHANGED SIGNIFICANTLY THIS YEAR COMPARED TO PRIOR YEARS AND IT TAKES SOME TIME FOR US TO ADJUST TO THAT LEARN AND YOU KNOW, LUCKILY WE DO HAVE A SYSTEM NOW WITH A FEEDBACK LOOP BUILT IN WHERE IT IS GETTING SMARTER EACH WEEK AND LEARNING HOW LONG DOES IT ACTUALLY TAKE TO GET DOWN DIFFERENT STREETS AT DIFFERENT TIMES SO THAT YOU KNOW, AT THE START OF THE YEAR THE ROUTES A LOT OF THEM THE SCHEDULED TIME WAS WAS NOT REALISTIC IT'S YOU KNOW AND AS AS THE SYSTEM IMPROVES EACH WEEK YOU KNOW THAT WE'RE ABLE TO ROUTE IN A WAY THAT IS MORE REALISTIC BASED ON WHAT ACTUALLY HAPPENS ON THE ROAD AND THE CURRENT TRAFFIC PATTERNS AND YEAH, WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO KEEP KEEP THINKING ABOUT THAT AND KEEP ADAPTING. THANK YOU. I THINK I'M OUT OF TIME, MR CHAIRMAN.  THANK YOU. THANK YOU. COUNCILOR FLYNN.  PRESIDENT LOUIJEUNE YEAH. FOR THANK YOU, MR CHAIR.  AND THANK YOU AGAIN TO EVERYONE WHO PROVIDED A PUBLIC TESTIMONY OUR BUS MONITORS. THANK YOU FOR THE WORK THAT YOU DO AND FOR MAKING SURE THAT OUR KIDS ARE SAFE AND WE ON THE COUNCIL I THINK LED BY COUNCILOR FERNANDO ANDERSON HAVE BEEN VERY SUPPORTIVE OF MAKING SURE THAT OUR WORKERS ESPECIALLY OUR LOW WAGE WORKERS ARE ABLE TO LIVE IN THIS VERY EXPENSIVE CITY. THE SECOND MOST EXPENSIVE CITY IN THE COUNTRY TO RENT. SO THANK YOU. AND PRESIDENT THANK YOU FOR BRINGING UP ALL OF THOSE REALLY IMPORTANT CONCERNS.  I THINK DAN, THIS IS PART OF THE FEEDBACK LOOP THAT I WAS TALKING ABOUT AND ALL THE COUNCILORS WERE JUST HEARD IT AND WERE LIKE WOW, THIS IS THESE ARE REAL ISSUES,  OPERATIONAL ISSUES WITH RESPECT TO THE THE IMPOSSIBILITY OF BEING ABLE TO ARRIVE AT THE NEXT PICKUP SPOT WITHIN A MINUTES TIME IS THE APP ARE ARE YOU ALL IRONING THAT OUT HOW ARE YOU IRONING IT OUT ARE YOU TALKING TO THE BUS DRIVERS TO MAKE SURE YOU'RE FIGURING OUT OKAY IS THIS WORKING? IS IT IMPROVING?  LIKE WHAT DOES THAT ACTUALLY LOOK LIKE? WHO IS TALKING TO THE BUS DRIVERS TO FIGURE OUT OKAY WE'VE UPDATED IT AND NOW IT SHOULD BE BETTER LIKE HOW DO THEY KNOW THAT LIKE IMPROVEMENTS ARE BEING MADE NOW IF THEY'RE BEING MADE YEAH YEAH. SO WE YOU KNOW OBVIOUSLY YOU KNOW THROUGH TRANSDEV AND IN PARTNERSHIP WITH TRANSDEV WE HAVE WE HAVE REGULAR CONVERSATIONS AND DIALOG WITH THEM WITH OUR BUS DRIVERS UNION YOU KNOW SPECIFIC TO INDIVIDUAL ROUTES EVERY ROUTE IS IS UNIQUE. EVERY ROUTE HAS SOMETHING DIFFERENT GOING ON.  YOU KNOW ANY TIME A BUS DRIVER HAS A CONCERN WITH THEIR ROUTE WE WOULD ASK AND ENCOURAGE THEM TO SUBMIT A ROUTE PROBLEM TO THEIR YARD MANAGER THAT'S GOING TO COME TO TO OUR TEAM.  WE'RE GOING TO INVESTIGATE IT. WE'RE GOING TO YOU KNOW, MAKE A CHANGE OR SOMETIMES WE MIGHT SAY WE DON'T SEE IT THE SAME WAY AND YOU KNOW, LET'S TALK ABOUT IT. BUT WE'RE GOING TO, YOU KNOW, MAKE A CHANGE AND THEN ANY TIME THOSE ROUTES ARE CHANGED THAT'S GOING TO BE WE CALL IT A GREEN SHEET PROCESS EACH WEEK WHERE YOU KNOW THOSE CHANGES ARE GOING TO BE COMMUNICATED BACK TO THE DRIVERS BEFORE THEY GO INTO EFFECT.  THEY HAVE TIME TO SEE WHAT THE CHANGE WAS AND YOU KNOW, DO A DRY RUN BEFORE THEY YOU KNOW, RUN THAT NEW ROUTE FOR THE FIRST TIME. OKAY. THANK YOU. I HEAR YOU. I'M SEEING SOME DISAGREEMENT IN TERMS OF LIKE HOW THE PROCESS WORKS FROM OUR BUS DRIVERS.  SO I KNOW WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THIS. I'D LOVE TO, YOU KNOW, FIGURE OUT HOW WE JUST MAKE THINGS WORK. ANOTHER ONE THING THAT I JUST WANTED TO ELEVATE IS ANOTHER CONCERN THAT I HEARD IS LIKE WE ARE TRYING TO OPTIMIZE FOR THAT 90% 95% ARRIVAL BUT SOMETIMES IN A WAY THAT IS DETRIMENTAL TO THE BUS DRIVERS WHEREAS LIKE THE IT'S THE APP IS YOU KNOW TURNING TURNING OFF BEFORE THE BUS DRIVER IS GETTING TO THE YARD AND MAYBE THEY'RE NOT BEING COMPENSATED FOR THAT TIME OR IT JUST IT JUST CREATES PROBLEMS BECAUSE THERE'S LIKE THIS RIGHT LIKE I THINK IT WAS STATED LIKE THE BOTTOM LINE IS THE GOAL RATHER THAN YOU KNOW ARE THE BUS DRIVERS DID THEY REALLY COMPLETE THEIR ROUTE? DID THEY COMPLETE THEIR LAST DROP OFF? IS THAT IS THAT AN ISSUE OR A CONCERN THAT YOU'VE HEARD?  YEAH. SO THE FIRST THING I WOULD SAY IS THAT THE GUYS INFORMATION COLLECTED REGARDLESS OF WHETHER THE DRIVERS APP IS ON OR NOT SO IF THE DRIVER IS HAVING AN ISSUE WITH THEIR PARTICULAR APP TURNING OFF AT A TIME THAT'S SOMETHING THAT THE MAINTENANCE TEAM CAN LOOK AT BUT THE DATA IS NOT LOST BECAUSE IT'S CONNECTED TO THE GPS UNIT. SO THAT'S BEING CAPTURED REGARDLESS. SO I THINK THAT WAS YOUR ONE OF YOUR QUESTIONS. OH YEAH. YEP. AND THEN FURTHER QUESTIONS ABOUT LIKE ISSUES WITH THE APP IT IS A NEW TECHNOLOGY THAT WE'VE ALL TALKED ABOUT THAT AND I PRESIDENT FOR SALES ALSO MENTIONED THAT YOU KNOW THE APP IS NOT WHILE IT IS NOT COMPLICATED I THINK WHAT WE ALL CAN AGREE IS IT DOESN'T MATTER IF IT'S NOT COMPLICATED FOR ME OR YOU OR MAYBE THE PRESIDENT BUT THERE ARE SOME PEOPLE WHO WILL WANT MORE TIME PRACTICING WITH THE APP AND LEARNING IT AND WE WANT TO MAKE SURE WE'RE MAKING THAT TIME AVAILABLE.  ALL AGREE THAT THAT TRAINING OPPORTUNITY IS IMPORTANT AND NEEDS TO BE ONGOING SO IT IS THE SAME TIME ARE MEAN THE MAINTENANCE TEAMS ARE LEARNING THE TECHNOLOGY THE PHYSICAL TECHNOLOGY SO WHEN THERE ARE ISSUES WITH IT THEY ARE PROBLEM SOLVING THAT AND WORKING THROUGH GETTING THAT RIGHT. SO IT IS STILL WE HAVE IMPLEMENTED BUT WE ARE STILL LEARNING AND WE ARE STILL IMPROVING WHAT WE CAN GET OUT OF THIS TECHNOLOGY SO THAT IT IS ACTUALLY HELPING US AND HELPING NOT WHEN I SAY US I MEAN THAT COLLECTIVELY I MEAN THAT TO EVERYONE WHO'S INTERACTING WITH THIS SYSTEM THAT WE ARE STILL FIGURING OUT HOW TO GET THE MOST OUT OF IT SO THAT WE GET ALL THE BENEFITS THAT ALL OF US COLLECTIVELY NEED TO PROVIDE. OKAY. AND THEN MY LAST QUESTION ABOUT LIKE THE APP TURNING OFF BEFORE THEY'RE ABLE TO GET TO THE YARD. YEAH SO IT IT SHOULDN'T I'D WANT TO YOU KNOW MAYBE SPEAK TO TO YOU AND WHATEVER DRIVERS ARE HAVING THAT EXPERIENCE TO BETTER UNDERSTAND WHEN THE DRIVER COMPLETES THEIR ROUTE YOU KNOW THEIR LAST ROUTE OF THE DAY THEY SHOULD THEN BE ABLE TO SELECT A YOU KNOW I THINK IT SAYS RETURN TO YARD BUT ONE OF THE DRIVERS HERE COULD TELL ME EXACTLY WHAT IT SAYS AND THEN IT SHOULD GIVE THEM GPS NAVIGATION BACK TO THE YARD SO IT SHOULDN'T JUST TURN OFF. OKAY. THANK YOU. ANOTHER GOOD QUESTION AND SOMETHING FOR US TO DISCUSS AT A LATER TIME. I THINK YOU COMPLICATE ISSUES REALLY HARD. IT'S NOT UNIQUE TO BOSTON. OUR STUDENTS DESERVE BETTER. I KNOW THAT WE ALL WANT BETTER AND I LOOK FORWARD TO THE CONTINUE WORK YOU THANK YOU PRESIDENT LOUIJEUNE WE'RE GOING TO GO OVER TO COUNCILOR MEJIA YOU HAVE 5 MINUTES. I JUST WANT TO WAS COUNCILOR ANDERSON HERE LONGER THAN ME WAITING THAT THAT'S CORRECT. YEAH. SO DO YOU WANT TO BECAUSE I HAD TO STEP OUT FOR A MEETING. I JUST WANT TO BE RESPECTFUL OF PEOPLE'S TIME. SO COUNCILOR ANDERSON, YOU ARE MORE THAN WELCOME. I'LL WAIT MY TURN CALLS RIGHT IN FRONT OF US ISN'T COUNCILOR FERNANDEZ ANDERSON, YOU HAVE THE FLOOR. THANK YOU SO MUCH AS CHAIR AND THANK YOU, MADAM COLLEAGUE.  COUNCILOR , YOU ARE SO GRACIOUS. I I DO HAVE SOME QUESTION I'D LIKE FIRST OF ALL IS IT EMMANUEL OR EMMANUEL? MARIO, I WISH YOU WERE ON A PANEL TALKING TO US HONESTLY AND ALSO SORRY TO THE CHAIR.  WHAT IS THE MADAM'S NAME THAT MERCEDES?  OH YES MISS 18 IS 80. YOU HELP ME TO FILE THE RESOLUTION THAT WE PASSED TO INCREASE THE PAY FOR BUS.  THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR EMAILS AND ADVOCACY.  I JUST I WANT TO I WANTED TO POINT OUT THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR BRAVERY AND ALSO THE FACT THAT YOU WERE EXPLAINING ABOUT EMMANUEL YOU EXPLAINING ABOUT YOUR CHILD HAVING DISABILITY AND I CAN SEE HOW THAT TRANSLATES TO YOU UNDERSTANDING THAT PARENTS NEED PATIENCE AND COMPASSION AND HOW YOU TRULY CARE ABOUT YOUR JOB IN THESE CHILDREN. AND I REALLY FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART AND I THINK I SPEAK FOR ALL OF US IN A COUNCIL THANK YOU SO MUCH. AND I DON'T THINK HE WAS NOT ENOUGH. SO LET'S TALK ABOUT IT. I THINK YOU KNOW, TO THE PARENTS AND WATCHING AT HOME HOPEFULLY YOU ARE WATCHING AND IF YOU DO DON'T WATCH IT. I'LL PUT IT ON MY SOCIAL MEDIA A CLIP OF THIS BUT I'VE WORKED AS A PARA A LONG TIME AGO IN A SCHOOL SETTING AND I'VE SEEN PARENTS COME IN UNPREPARED OR DISHEVELED OR WHATEVER LIKE IT BECAUSE PEOPLE HAVE HARDSHIPS IN THEIR DAILY LIVES OR WHATEVER BUT IT'S JUST NOT FAIR. PARENTS ARE RUDE SOME SOME PARENTS ARE RUDE TO TEACHERS TO PARIS, TO BUS MONITORS, TO DRIVERS AND IT'S JUST APPALLING. IT JUST NEEDS TO STOP. IT'S A BAD EXAMPLE FOR YOUR CHILDREN. IT'S NOT OKAY. YOU ARE TRUST IN TRUSTING PEOPLE WITH YOUR CHILD ALL DAY MOST OF THE DAY AND WHEN THERE'S THAT EXCHANGE YOU KNOW THESE ARE PEOPLE THAT ARE LOVING AND PROTECTING AND EDUCATING AND TAKING CARE OF YOUR CHILD. YOU KNOW, LET'S HAVE A POSITIVE INTERACTION WITH THOSE THAT TAKE CARE OF OUR CHILDREN AND LET'S BE GRATEFUL I'VE SEEN IT . IT'S NASTY. IT'S HORRIBLE AND I'M SO SORRY THAT HAVE TO GO THROUGH THAT. AND FOR THE PARENTS THAT ARE GOING THROUGH STRESS, I DO HOPE THINGS GET BETTER AT HOME BUT PLEASE DO NOT TAKE IT OUT ON THE PEOPLE. TAKE CARE OF YOUR CHILDREN FOR IN TERMS OF YOU KNOW THE BUS MONITORS PAY I AGREE WITH YOU. I DID THE MATH. IT'S LIKE LESS THAN 40,000 A YEAR. IT'S AWFUL. WE'VE ALREADY PASSED A RESOLUTION HERE. ALL COUNCILORS BELIEVE THAT WE'LL CONTINUE TO ADVOCATE TO INCREASE PAY FOR BUS MONITORS. IT'S HORRIBLE BECAUSE YOU HAVE TO STAND IN THIS BUS SOMETIMES YOU GET A LITTLE BIT WOOZY, RIGHT? LIKE YOU HAVE TO STAND UP AND WALK THROUGH. YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH YOUR BODY.  SO IT'S A MOVING VEHICLE THAT YOU HAVE TO STAND UP AND MOVE THROUGH AND MONITOR KIDS AND THEN GET BEAT UP SOMETIMES BY SOME OF THE SOME CHILDREN THAT ARE HAVING BEHAVIORAL WHATEVER ISSUES.  AND SO IT'S IT'S REALLY TOUGH AND YOU CAN'T NECESSARILY RESTRAIN KIDS ON A MOVING BUS AND THEN IF YOU'RE NOT ACTUALLY CERTIFIED TO RESTRAIN THOSE KIDS, YOU'RE NOT ALLOWED TO ACTUALLY TOUCH THEM. SO THEN HOW DO YOU RESTRAIN A KID AND KEEP THEM SAFE? YOU CAN'T CAN'T TOUCH THEM. SO AND I KNOW THIS RIGHT AGAIN FROM WORKING IN PARKS FIELD OR WHATEVER SO I'M WE NEED TO FIX THAT. WE SPEND ABOUT $20 MILLION TO BUS KIDS IN AND I GET IT THE TRAUMA IT'S CONSIDERED TRAUMA JUST TO BE TO BECOME HOMELESS FOR A CHILD IT'S ALSO CONSIDERED TRAUMA TO CHANGE SCHOOLS TEEN PARENTING ALONG WITH A BUNCH OF STUFF, RIGHT LIKE WE ADD OF TRAUMA TO OUR CHILDREN ESPECIALLY OF LOW SOCIOECONOMIC CLASS. SO I GET WHY THIS POLICY EXISTS. I WANT TO DO MORE RESEARCH ON THAT AND FIGURE OUT IF I'M GOING TO SPEND $20 MILLION BECAUSE WE ARE DISPLACING CHILDREN FROM BOSTON BECAUSE WE CAN'T AFFORD TO HOUSE THEM BUT THEN WE SPEND $20 MILLION APIECE TO BUS THEM BACK IN WHICH IS LIKE I KNOW THEY'RE COMING FROM FAR AWAY SO IT'S LIKE ANOTHER HOUR AND A HALF OR 2 HOURS ON THIS BUS. THEY ARE ALWAYS LATE TOO.  I HAD A LOT OF THEM AS CLIENTS SO THAT IN ITSELF IS TRAUMATIC AND I DON'T SEE THAT AS BEING A GOOD EXPERIENCE.  WE REALLY NEED TO LOOK AT HOW TO BETTER USE THAT 20 MILLION HOUSING KIDS OR WE BUSSING THEM IN AFTER WE DISPLACE THEM.  THAT'S WEIRD. AND SO THE AGE BUS, THE AGED BUS MONITORS I MEAN BUSSES THAT ARE NOT WORKING WHAT'S UP WITH THAT? THEY CAN WE LIKE DO WE DO WE HAVE AN INVENTORY OF THE BUSSES WORKING NOT WORKING MECHANICAL ISSUES ARE THEY OLD. I CAN SEE WINTER TIME NOT STARTING I GOT WHAT YOU SAID ABOUT YOU KNOW THE GPS TRACKERS LIKE NOT BUT I JUST I DON'T UNDERSTAND HOW THAT IF IT'S IF THE APP SHUTS DOWN AND I THINK AS A PARENT THAT MY KID'S SUPPOSED TO BE DONE AT FIVE IS YOU'RE SAYING THEN THAT THE DRIVER IS GETTING PAID ALL THE WAY TO THE TIME THEY PARK THE BUS IN THE DRIVEWAY? OKAY. JUST JUST TO CLARIFY BUT CAN WE GO TO THE TO THE BUSSES? WHAT'S UP WITH THE MECHANICS? WHAT ARE WE DOING?  YEAH, I CAN I CAN START SO OUR OUR BUS FLEET IS YOU KNOW, IS AGING. I THINK YOU SPOKE A LITTLE BIT EARLIER ABOUT OUR REPLACEMENT RATE OF BUSSES THE LAST FEW YEARS AS WE'VE TRANSITIONED TO PURCHASING ELECTRIC BUSSES TO GREEN OUR FLEET ARE YOU KNOW THOSE BUSSES HAVE HIGHER UPFRONT COSTS AND WE'VE BEEN THINKING ABOUT HOW ARE WE FINE FINANCING AND FUNDING THAT LONG TERM OUR REPLACEMENT RATE OF BUSSES THE LAST FEW YEARS WAS LOWER THAN OUR HISTORICAL REPLACEMENT RATE AND SO RIGHT NOW OUR BUS FLEET IS A LITTLE BIT OLDER.  SO ANOTHER PAIN POINT, RIGHT? WE DIDN'T HEAR THAT EARLIER. THAT'S OH YOU ONLY WANTED THE TOP FOR YOU. I THOUGHT I HEARD A LAUNDRY LIST.  YES I DO ACTUALLY. LET'S CONTINUE THE CONVERSATION LATER THEN. YES, ABSOLUTELY BY ALL MEANS. BUT SO YEAH SO WE'RE WE'RE REALLY LOOKING AT RIGHT NOW YOU KNOW WHAT IS IT ONE WE HAVE A LOT OF FEDERAL GRANT MONEY THAT WE HAVE GOTTEN IN THE LAST FEW YEARS. SO WE ARE GOING TO BE RAMPING THAT REPLACEMENT RATE BACK UP. WE'RE ALSO LOOKING AT YOU KNOW, HISTORICALLY WE'VE TRADED IN BUSSES EVERY TIME WE GET NEW BUSSES INTO THE FLEET SHOULD WE CONSIDER, YOU KNOW, KEEPING SOME OF THOSE AND INCREASING THE SIZE OF THE FLEET WE'RE LOOKING AT DIFFERENT DIFFERENT STRATEGIES RIGHT NOW. SO WHAT ARE THE RIGHT TYPE OF BUSSES IN THE RIGHT SIZE BUSSES FOR YOU KNOW, NOT WHAT WE HAD SEVEN YEARS AGO BUT THE STUDENT POPULATION THAT WE HAVE NOW. SO I DO THINK THAT, YOU KNOW, THE FLEET AND PARTICULARLY THE AGING FLEET IS IS ONE PAIN POINT RIGHT NOW AND IT'S SOMETHING WE'RE FOCUSED ON. HOW DO WE IMPROVE THAT? MR CHAIR, THANK YOU SO MUCH, MR CHAIR AND MADAM CONCILOR MEJIA HERE IS IT OKAY IF I JUST LEAVE MY LAST QUESTIONS WITH THEM? THANK YOU SO THE STUDENTS BEING RUSHED ON THE BUS THAT'S CRAZY, RIGHT? THAT IS SO CRAZY.  I MEAN, THAT'S HOW WE'RE GETTING THE WRONG KIDS ON THE WRONG BUSSES.  THAT NEEDS TO STOP IMMEDIATELY. THAT IS SOMETHING YOU WE CAN ACTUALLY CONTROL. THAT IS LIKE THERE IS ABSOLUTELY NOWHERE IN NO UNIVERSE AND NO SCHOOL SHOULD CHILDREN BE RUSHED ON THE BUS WHERE BUS DRIVERS ARE NOT ALLOWED TO DO THEIR JOB PROPERLY? EVERY SINGLE PRINCIPAL SHOULD BE CALLED ON THIS. THIS IS ABSOLUTELY RIDICULOUS AND I KNOW IT'S NOT ON YOU BUT WE HAVE TO WORK TOGETHER TO GET THEM SUPERINTENDENT AND SAY NO, THIS STOPS TODAY. NO WAY THAT SHOULD HAPPEN. I DON'T CARE HOW MUCH TIME IS TAKING SOME OF THESE KIDS, YOU KNOW YOU KNOW HOW IT IS ATTITUDE, MOOD SOMEBODY IS ON THEIR CYCLE, WHATEVER. YOU KNOW KIDS THEY THEY'RE BEING RUSHED ON AND THEN THE KIDS THAT ARE IN BETWEEN THE KIDS WITH DISABILITIES AND YOU GETTING THE WRONG KID OR SOMETHING'S HAPPENING OR YOU'RE MISSING A KID.  WE GOT TO STOP THAT, RIGHT? YOU AGREE WITH ME , RIGHT? YEAH. I THINK I THINK THIS IS AN AREA WHERE YOU KNOW WHAT WE CAN TAKE AWAY FROM THIS IS YOU KNOW, WE NEED TO TO BETTER SUPPORT OUR SCHOOLS SO THAT THEY'RE ABLE TO YOU KNOW, THEY HAVE THE TOOLS AND INFORMATION THEY NEED TO MANAGE AN EFFICIENT BUS DISMISSAL PROCESS. BUT IN A WAY THAT'S THAT'S NOT RUSHING THE STUDENTS, NOT RUSHING OUR DRIVERS AND MONITORS, YOU KNOW, AND THAT WORKS FOR EVERYBODY. I'M SO GLAD YOU AGREE WITH ME . THE QUESTION THAT I WANT TO LEAVE WITH YOU IS CAN WE SURVEY EVERYBODY? I DON'T KNOW WITH THE UNION AND I WANT TO SAY LET'S PROTECT THIS BLACK MAN LIKE IN BEEPS WHAT ALL THE ISSUES WITH LIKE YOU KNOW, FIRING AND DISPLACING BLACK PEOPLE AND BEEPS AND STUFF CAN PROTECT HIM BECAUSE YOU CAME IN HERE, YOU'RE BRAVE. YOU'RE DOING WHAT YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO DO PROTECTING THESE KIDS AND DOING YOUR JOB. I KNOW THAT I SPEAK FOR ALL OF US WHEN WE SAY LIKE WE GOT YOUR BACK AND SO LIKE BY NO MEANS LIKE HOPEFULLY NEVER ANYONE APPROACHES YOU WITH ANY FUNNY BUSINESS ABOUT YOUR JOB SECURITY BUT ALSO CAN WE SURVEY BUS MONITORS AND DRIVERS FOR THEIR BELIEFS OR OPINIONS ON WHAT THEIR TRAINING SHOULD BE? CAN WE DO THAT?  YEAH. SO I THINK YOU KNOW, ACTUALLY JUST WHAT WAS IT LAST TUESDAY OR WEDNESDAY IN OUR WEDNESDAY THINK YOU SAID IN OUR YOU KNOW WE HAVE REGULAR MONTHLY IF NOT MORE FREQUENT MEETINGS WITH THE BUS MONITORS UNION THAT'S ACTUALLY A TOPIC WE WERE DISCUSSING LAST WEEK AND IT WAS IT WAS IT WAS A GREAT IDEA THAT GIOVANNI AND SADIE AND THE REST OF THE UNION BROUGHT IT TO IT. YOU KNOW, THEY BROUGHT THIS IDEA THAT THEY ALSO SAID HERE TO CREATE VIDEOS TO HELP WITH TRAINING AND SO YEAH, WE'RE GOING TO CONTINUE THOSE CONVERSATIONS AND IT'S SOMETHING THAT THAT WE'RE GOING TO WORK TO DO. I HOPE WE CAN HAVE IT BUT I THOUGHT IT WAS SMART COMING UP WITH A NEW IDEA. ALL RIGHT. YOU'RE AHEAD OF ME. THANK YOU SO MUCH. THANK YOU FOR YOUR WORK. APPRECIATE IT. THANK YOU, MISS CHAIR. THEN YOU'RE COUNCILOR COUNCIL MEMBER HERE YOU HAVE THE FLOOR . THANK YOU FOR ALLOWING ME TO STEP OUT FOR A MEETING AND COME BACK. SO I'M HAPPY TO BE HERE AND I'M GLAD THAT YOU'RE STILL HERE AND I WANT TO GIVE A SHOUT OUT TO THE BUS MONITORS AND TO THE BUS DRIVERS AND TO THE BUS MONITORS BECAUSE I THINK MAYBE TWO OR THREE YEARS AGO MANY YEARS AGO YOU CAME IN HERE AND YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT THE CONDITIONS IN WHICH YOU WERE OPERATING UNDER AND I'M HAPPY TO SEE THAT, YOU KNOW, YEARS LATER BIPS YOU KNOW, IN TERMS OF THE CONTRACT THERE WAS SOME IMPROVEMENT BUT FROM WHAT I UNDERSTAND THERE'S STILL A LITTLE BIT MORE THAT WE COULD BE DOING AND I KNOW SOME OF THAT WORK IS THROUGH THE COLLECTIVE BARGAINING. I KNOW THAT THERE'S CERTAIN THINGS THAT WE CAN'T REALLY ADVOCATE BUT I JUST WANT YOU ALL TO KNOW THAT WE SEE YOU. WE APPRECIATE YOU. WE KNOW RIGHT, THAT IT IS NOT EASY TO DO THIS WORK. I LIKE TO LOOK AT THE PEOPLE AND I LIKE YOUR ORIGINAL JOB. YOU CAN THEY'RE THE BEST LEFT RIGHT THAT IT IS NOT EASY TO DO YOUR JOB RIGHT. YOU'RE DEALING WITH FOLKS SOMETIMES WHO WHEN YOU GO PICK UP OR DROP OFF A CHILD THE PARENT IS UPSET BECAUSE THE BUS IS LATE OR YOU KNOW THERE WAS A FIGHT ON THE BUS THAT THE CHILD GOT HURT.  YOU ARE THE FRONT LINE. YOU'RE THE ONE WHO DEALS WITH THE WRATH OF THAT FAMILY BEFORE THEY EVEN CALL CPS. RIGHT. AND THAT LEVEL OF TREATMENT AND TRAUMA THAT THEY CARRY TO COUNSELOR ANDERSON'S POINT IN TERMS OF SERVING THEM IN TERMS OF TRAINING THAT I THINK THAT IT'S NOT ABOUT THE CUSTOMER SERVICE BUT IT'S ALSO HOW DO YOU TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF AS YOU'RE WORKING AND NAVIGATING A HOSTILE ENVIRONMENT BECAUSE PEOPLE THESE DAYS WHERE WE HAVE A SHORT FUZE RIGHT WE JUST DON'T HAVE THE PATIENCE AND THE TOLERANCE THAT THIS TIME REQUIRES AND I THINK THAT PART OF THE PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT SHOULDN'T JUST BE FROM POINT A TO POINT B BUT THERE SHOULD BE SOME SOME WORK AROUND SELF CARE AND SOMETIMES DEDICATED TO DE-ESCALATING SITUATIONS AND I'M NOT SURE IF YOU DO THAT BUT I THINK DE-ESCALATION TACTICS ARE REALLY IMPORTANT IN THIS DAY AND AGE AND I'M CURIOUS WHETHER OR NOT THAT IS PART OF THE PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT IF YOU HAPPEN TO KNOW. YES. SO THAT THAT IS PART OF THE ANNUAL TRAINING.  BUT I THINK YOU KNOW TO TO BOTH YOU KNOW SAY IN GIOVANNI AND OTHERS, YOU KNOW OTHER FEEDBACK THAT WE'VE HEARD FROM MONITORS WE WE KIND OF NEED TO DO MORE AROUND AROUND THAT AND AROUND ALL ASPECTS OF THE TRAINING.  SO IT'S A FOCUS AREA FOR US FOR SURE. THANK YOU FOR THAT.  AND THEN I JUST WANT TO I MISSED YOUR TESTIMONY BUT I'M GOING TO GO BACK AND WATCH IT BECAUSE COUNCILOR ANDERSON KEEPS REFERRING BACK TO YOU IN REGARDS TO THE RETALIATION PIECE. BUT I WANT YOU TO KNOW THAT OUR OFFICE IN PARTNERSHIP WITH ALL OF OUR COLLEAGUES HERE WE HELD A HEARING AROUND THE HIRING, FIRING AND PROMOTIONAL PRACTICES OF BOSTON EMPLOYEES. BP'S B PD AND WE UNDERSTAND THAT IT TAKES A LOT OF COURAGE TO SPEAK UP BECAUSE WE'RE DEALING WITH PEOPLE'S LIVELIHOODS. AND SO WHEN YOU COME INTO THIS CHAMBER TO COUNCILOR ANDERSON'S POINT, WE DO HAVE YOUR BACK BECAUSE THE ONLY WAY WE'RE GOING TO CHANGE THE SYSTEM IS IF PEOPLE START SPEAKING TRUTH TO POWER IN THIS CHAMBER BECAUSE WE DON'T KNOW WHAT WE DON'T KNOW AND OFTENTIMES THINGS JUST PEOPLE KEEP KICKING THE CAN DOWN THE STREET BUT WE HAVE TO BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE AND RESPONSIBLE BECAUSE ULTIMATELY WE APPROVE THE BUDGET WRITE THESE THESE THINGS HAVE AN IMPACT ON THE DECISIONS THAT WE MAKE AND VERY MUCH SO WE NEED TO PROTECT OUR WORKERS BY ANY MEANS NECESSARY. AND SO I JUST WANT YOU TO KNOW THAT WE'RE HERE FOR THAT WORK TO NOW I JUST HAVE TWO QUESTIONS.  I WANT TO GO BACK TO THE $200 A DAY THEN IT VARIES BUT THAT'S ABOUT AN AVERAGE $200 A DAY AND HOW MANY STUDENTS ARE WE? I THINK IT'S AT LAST KIND OF A LITTLE OVER 500 STUDENTS. SO THAT IS OVERALL MORE ALMOST A MILLION FOR WHAT IT WOULD BE ABOUT 17 MILLION FOR THE SCHOOL YEAR.  WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THAT? IT IT'S IT'S A LOT OF MONEY AND WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME WELL DO YOU GUYS DO AUDITS OF EFFICIENCIES WITHIN YOUR DEPARTMENT?  SO WHEN WE TALK ABOUT THIS TRANSPORTATION I JUST WANT TO BE VERY CLEAR. SO THIS IS THIS TRANSPORTATION IS GOVERNED BY THE MCKINNEY VENTO ACT, YOUR FEDERAL ACT IT'S IT'S FEDERALLY MANDATED STATION FOR THESE STUDENTS. YEAH.  SO YEAH SO WE'RE CONTINUALLY WE HAVE CONTRACTS AND WHEN I SAY WE I SHOULD ALSO CLARIFY THIS TRANSPORTATION IS IS ORGANIZED AND SET UP THROUGH THE DEPARTMENT OF OPPORTUNITY YOUTH WHICH IS PRIMARILY RESPONSIBLE FOR SUPPORTING OUR STUDENTS WITH WITH HOMELESSNESS SO THE THE FUNDING DOES SIT WITHIN THE CPS TRANSPORTATION BUDGET BUT OPERATIONALLY WE'RE NOT THE ONES ARRANGING IT I'LL HAVE TO SAY WE HAVE ABOUT 40 VENDOR WE HAVE 40 VENDORS THAT WE HAVE CONTRACTS WITH RIGHT NOW AS A DISTRICT THOSE CONTRACTS EXPIRE AT THE END OF THIS FISCAL YEAR AND RELATIVELY SOON WE'LL BE GETTING THE BE BEGINNING THE PROCESS TO DRAFT A NEW INVITATION FOR BIDS AND THINKING ABOUT HOW ARE WE BIDDING OUT THIS WORK IN THE WAY THAT BOTH SUPPORTS, YOU KNOW, MEETS STUDENTS NEEDS AND IS AS EFFICIENT AS POSSIBLE? YEAH SO BECAUSE THIS IS PROBABLY WHAT I ALWAYS SAY THIS EVERYWHERE THAT I GO IT'S LIKE WE ARE RESOURCE RICH FOR COORDINATION POOR RIGHT BECAUSE IF WE'RE LOOKING AT THE STUDENTS WHO ARE DISPLACE STRAIGHT WE'RE LOOKING AT HOUSING LIKE ALL OF THESE THINGS ARE INTERCONNECTED.  RIGHT? AND SO I THINK A LOT OF THE DECISIONS THAT GET MADE IN TERMS OF EVEN WHERE WE PLACE YOUNG PEOPLE I MEAN THE ONLY REASON WHY I'M FAMILIAR WITH THIS IS BECAUSE I HAD A CONSTITUENT WHO'S A CHILD WHO WAS DISPLACED AND I THINK THEY WERE IN WORCESTER.  I THINK THEY WERE UNDER THE LITTLE HOUR. I THINK YOU CAN BE FURTHER I THINK IT'S WITHIN AN HOUR. RIGHT. YOU HAVE TO STAY WITHIN AN HOUR . IT WAS I'M NOT THE BEST PERSON TO SPEAK TO THIS BUT AS I UNDERSTAND IT, IT ACTUALLY EVEN FOR STUDENTS WHO ARE OVER AN HOUR OUTSIDE THE CITY NOW, THERE'S STILL THE ABILITY FOR THE FAMILY IF THEY FEEL THAT'S BEST TO OPT TO STAY IN THEIR THEIR DISTRICT OF ORIGIN.  SO THE GOAL SHOULD BE TO KEEP OUR KIDS IN BOSTON AND TO USE THAT 17 MILLION TO KEEP THEM HOUSED HERE.  RIGHT. BECAUSE IF WE'RE TALKING ABOUT EFFICIENCIES IN GOVERNMENT WHICH IS PROBABLY ONE OF THE REASONS WHY SO MANY PEOPLE HAVE A HARD TIME WITH GOVERNMENT BECAUSE THERE'S A LOT OF THINGS THAT WE COULD BE DOING DIFFERENTLY BECAUSE WE'VE DONE THINGS THE WAY WE'VE DONE THINGS BECAUSE WE THINK THAT'S THE WAY TO DO THEM BUT IT'S NOT MEETING THE MOMENT RIGHT NOW AND I FEEL LIKE WE NEED TO REALLY START THINKING ABOUT I KNOW IT'S AN ACT AND IT'S FEDERAL AND WE HAVE TO DO WHAT WE HAVE TO DO BUT IT'S A BIGGER CONVERSATION THAT WE'RE NOT GOING TO FIX. AND SO I KNOW THAT I JUST IT JUST DOESN'T MAKE ANY SENSE TO ME . I'M HERE FOR THE CONVERSATION. IT DOESN'T MAKE ANY SENSE TO FIX IT BUT I'M HERE WE'RE GOING TO FACE HERE TO DO MY PART SO LET'S TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT EFFICIENCY AND AUDITS.  WHEN DO YOU DO AUDITS REGULARLY ON YOUR PROTOCOLS, YOUR POLICIES, YOUR PROCEDURES, YOUR ON TIME ARRIVALS LIKE HOW OFTEN DO YOU AUDIT AND WHO DOES THE AUDITING?  YEAH, SO WE'RE WE'RE CONSTANTLY REVIEWING ALL OF THAT. YOU KNOW, EVERY SINGLE EVERY YEAR WE'RE GOING TO LOOK AT ALL OF OUR SOPS, ALL THE TRAINING THAT WE PROVIDE FOR OUR OUR STAFF, ALL OF OUR SYSTEMS AND PROCESSES WITHIN THE YOU KNOW, THE TRANS DEV CONTRACT WE HAVE A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT MECHANISMS TO HOLD THEM ACCOUNTABLE. ARE THOSE AUDITS DONE IN-HOUSE OR ARE OH LIKE DO YOU DO NOT YOU BUT DO YOU HAVE A TEAM WITHIN OUR TEAM? YES. AND IS THERE AN OUTSIDE I HEARD THE CLOCK AM I DONE?  YEAH. SO DO YOU WORK IN CONSULTATION WITH OTHERS LIKE JUST HELP ME UNDERSTAND THAT. YEAH. SO YOU KNOW WE DO A TON OF WORK WITHIN OUR TEAM OBVIOUSLY TO TO IMPROVE OUR EFFICIENCY AND IMPROVE OUR SERVICE AND ALMOST TWO YEARS AGO NOW AS YOU MAY KNOW THE COUNCIL OF GREAT CITY SCHOOLS CAME IN AND THEY DID A REALLY COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW AUDIT DEEP DIVE ON THE TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM IN BOSTON AND THEY PROVIDED, YOU KNOW, THEIR REPORT BACK WHICH HAS WHICH HAS BEEN ONE OF OUR GUIDING DOCUMENTS THE LAST FEW YEARS AND THEN CERTAINLY THROUGH THE BUDGET PROCESS EVERY YEAR WE'RE WORKING CLOSELY WITH WITH FINANCE AND BRIAN AND SAM DE PINA AND OTHERS TO YOU KNOW, TO LOOK AT OUR OPERATIONS I THINK BECAUSE I FEEL LIKE THERE'S A THIS THIS IS PROBABLY WHERE FOR ME THERE'S A DISCONNECT BECAUSE HAVING THIS IS MY FOURTH YEAR HERE ON THIS COUNCIL AND I FEEL LIKE I KEEP ASKING THE SAME QUESTIONS AND I ALWAYS SAY THE ONLY THING THAT CHANGES ARE THE FOLKS THAT ARE IN FRONT OF ME.  SO SOMETHING IS NOT STICKING WITH THE WAY WE'RE FUNCTIONING. AND I ASKED THIS WITH ALL SINCERITY BECAUSE WE'RE YOU KNOW, WE'RE GEARING UP FOR BUDGET SEASON AND WE NEED TO KNOW THESE HEARINGS OR AT LEAST THEY OFFER ME AN OPPORTUNITY TO HEAR FROM YOU ALL WHERE THE GAPS ARE AND WHAT WE NEED TO ADVOCATE FOR SO THAT YOU CAN DELIVER SO THIS IS YOUR OPPORTUNITY LITTLE MAGIC WAND HERE WHAT NEEDS TO HAPPEN TO HELP SUPPORT YOU ALL IN YOUR WORK?  YEAH I APPRECIATE THAT. IF ONLY WE HAD A MAGIC WAND. IF ONLY IT WERE THAT EASY.  I THINK THAT YOU KNOW THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT WORK.  WE HAVE MANY DIFFERENT PARTNERS IN THIS WORK. I THINK YOU KNOW, JUST TO KIND OF RECAP SOME OF WHAT WE'VE TALKED ABOUT TODAY, WE YOU KNOW, WE HAVE CERTAINLY WORK TO DO WITHIN OUR OPERATION TO CONTINUE TO IMPROVE AND THEN THERE'S ALSO MANY, YOU KNOW, UNDERLYING STRUCTURAL CHALLENGES THAT ARE ALWAYS GOING TO BE A FACTOR IN AN IMPACT PIECE TRANSPORTATION YOU KNOW, WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THESE WHETHER IT'S THE THE BELLE TIMES, THE STUDENT ASSIGNMENTS, YOU KNOW, SCHOOL PLACEMENTS, STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES, ALL OF THESE THINGS WE NEED TO CONTINUE TO HAVE CONVERSATIONS I THINK ACROSS THE DISTRICT, ACROSS THE CITY WITH CITY COUNCIL , WITH ALL OUR PARTNERS ABOUT ALL OF THESE FACTORS AND HOW THEY IMPACT NOT JUST TRANSPORTATION BUT HOW THEY IMPACT OUR STUDENTS IN MANY DIFFERENT WAYS TO HELP PUSH FORWARD THE WORK TO IMPROVE IT. GO AHEAD AND THEN I'M GOING TO END WITH MY YOU GO AHEAD. GO AHEAD. I I CAN EVEN GIVE SOME MORE SPECIFICS TO LOOK INTO BUT YOU KNOW, PART OF THE WORK THAT WE DID WITH D.C. ON AUDITING THE DEPARTMENT AND THE COUNCIL FOR GREAT CITY SCHOOLS COMING OUT OF THAT WERE SOME COMPREHENSIVE DOCUMENTS WITH SPECIFIC ACTION STEPS TO TAKE AND I WOULD SAY THAT THAT IS A REALLY COMPREHENSIVE LIST OF ACTION STEPS THAT WE'RE WORKING THROUGH AND THAT THAT REPRESENTS THE MOST CONCISE SUMMARY OF OUR WISH LIST OF THINGS THAT WE WOULD SEEK SUPPORT IN EFFECTUATING SO THE LAST THING THAT I'D ADD TO AN AUDIT AND I'M NOT SURE IF IT EXISTS SOMEWHERE I CAN GO GOOGLE IT AND FIND IT BUT I'M CURIOUS BECAUSE I OFTEN SEE BUSSES WHERE THERE'S ONLY TWO OR THREE KIDS ON THE BUS AND I'VE LOTS TO SAY THAT I AM A STOCKER AND I FOLLOW THE WHOLE BUS BUT I'M LIKE WHY IS THE BUS HALF EMPTY? SO I'M JUST CURIOUS HAVE YOU DONE AS AN ASSESSMENT BECAUSE I KNOW SOMETIMES IT'S BECAUSE THE TIME SOME KIDS START AT SEVENTH I KNOW WHY SOME TIMES KIDS START AT 730 THERE'S ONE BUS ROUTE AND THEY'RE DROPPING KIDS OFF BUT LIKE HAVE YOU FIGURED OUT HOW TO ADDRESS THE EMPTY BUS SYNDROME THAT WE HEAR OFTEN ABOUT?  YEAH. SO WHAT I'LL SAY AND I THINK YOU ALLUDED TO IT IS FIRST EVEN IN A PERFECT WORLD WHERE A BUS IS FULLY YOU KNOW, EVERY SEAT ON THE BUS HAS A STUDENT ASSIGNED TO IT AND THAT STUDENT IS RIDING THE BUS. THE BUS IS GOING TO LEAVE THE BUS YARD EMPTY, PICK UP ONE KID AT THE FIRST STOP EACH KID AT EACH SUBSEQUENT STOP.  IT'S NOT UNTIL HALFWAY THROUGH THE ROUTE THAT THE BUS WILL LOOK HALF FULL AND NEAR THE END OF THE ROUTE THAT THE BUS WILL LOOK FULL. SO EVEN IN THAT PERFECT WORLD MOST OF THE BUSSES YOU SEE ON THE ROAD WOULD STILL BE APPEAR EMPTY OR HALF EMPTY OR LESS.  WHAT WE ARE DOING RIGHT NOW AND WHAT ZOOM IS HELPING US TO IS PUT SOME DATA BEHIND THIS ANECDOTAL FEELING THAT WE ALL HAVE WHICH IS THERE'S 22,700 STUDENTS ASSIGNED TO THE BUS.  THOSE STUDENTS ARE ALL RIDING THE BUS. WHAT WE FOUND AFTER TWO MONTHS IS THERE'S AROUND 1300 OF THOSE STUDENTS WHO HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED AS PRETTY MUCH NEVER RIDING THE BUS. AND YOU KNOW, WE'RE DOING TARGETED WORK RIGHT NOW WITH THOSE SCHOOLS AND FAMILIES TO UNDERSTAND WHY IS THAT IS THAT YOU KNOW, THEY WANT THE BUS BUT IT DOESN'T WORK FOR THEM BECAUSE IT'S LATE OR WHAT HAVE YOU AND WE NEED TO FIX SOMETHING OR THEY DON'T NEED THE BUS.  SO YOU KNOW, WE'RE GOING TO CONTINUE I THINK OVER THE NEXT FEW MONTHS IN THE COURSE OF THIS SCHOOL YEAR TO REALLY DIVE IN ON THAT RIDERSHIP DATA AND UNDERSTAND WHO IS RIDING THE BUS AND WHO NEEDS THE BUS AND THEN THAT WILL INFORM AS WE THINK ABOUT THINGS LIKE OUR BUS FLEET AND WHAT TYPES OF BUSSES WERE PURCHASING, MAKING SURE THAT WE'RE GETTING A FLEET THAT HAS THE RIGHT SIZE BUSSES AND TYPES OF BUSSES TO MEET THE NEEDS OF THE STUDENTS WHO ACTUALLY ARE RIDING THE BUS. THANK YOU FOR THAT AND I'M GLAD THAT I ASK YOU THE QUESTION BECAUSE A LOT OF PEOPLE ASK ME BUT NOW I CAN JUST PLAY YOUR TAPE AND SAY THIS IS WHAT HE SAID Y'ALL. YEAH, THIS IS WHAT HAPPENED. SO I APPRECIATE YOU DOING JUST THAT AND I'M GOING TO OCCUPY SPACE. I THINK I'M GOING TO LET THE CHAIR PUT ME ON MUTE.  ARE THAT NUMBER THAT THING IT COMES FROM HERE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVE. AND YOU HAVE A FOLLOW UP QUESTION.  SO THEN WE'LL GO TO CLOSING REMARKS FROM OUR FROM OUR LEAD SPONSORS. THANK YOU.  I THINK JUST MORE OF A REMARK I REALLY LIKE THAT YOU TWO THINGS. ONE, WE'RE GOING TO FIND THAT D.C. COMPREHENSIVE PLEASE.  AND THEN SECOND IN TERMS OF YOU KNOW, I REALLY LIKE THE WAY THAT YOU JUST BROKE DOWN. YOU KNOW, AN ASSESSMENT OF ME MEANS THAT I'M ALSO TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT SIZE AND THAT MEANS THAT WE'RE ALREADY INCORPORATING THE PROBLEM WITH OUR SCHOOL BUSSES. BUT THEN WE CAN'T FIGURE THAT OUT UNTIL WE'RE, YOU KNOW, ORDERING A NEW FLEET AND FIGURING OUT THE PROPER SIZE AND ASSESSING THAT AND THE NEED AND THE TIME TO SCHEDULE. AND SO THAT'S THAT'S EASY TO EXPLAIN. THAT'S EASY TO UNDERSTAND. SO I DO I DO APPRECIATE THAT AND I HOPE THAT FOLKS AT HOME THAT ARE WATCHING UNDERSTAND THAT, YOU KNOW, IT'S A VERY HARD JOB. IT'S NOT AS EASY LIKE YOU KNOW, AS JUST ASKING YOU LIKE WHAT'S THE PROBLEM JUST FIX IT AND THEN YOU SIT HERE AND IT'S ANXIETY INDUCING AND THEN WE'RE JUST LIKE ASKING, ASKING, ASKING, ASKING. SO I WANTED I SHOULD HAVE PREFACED IT WITH THAT. BUT EITHER WAY I'M CLOSING WITH THAT AND I'M SAYING I DO APPRECIATE YOU AS YOU KNOW IS PEOPLE THAT ARE ALSO WORKING VERY HARD BUT ALSO WANT CHILDREN TO BE VERY SAFE THAT ALSO WANT TO PROTECT OUR PEOPLE . AND IT'S NOT YOUR DECISION TO, YOU KNOW, GIVE PEOPLE RAISES OR WHERE THE FUNDING IS COMING FROM FOR THE TRAININGS OR THOSE DECISIONS ALL COME FROM THE PEOPLE WHO SET THE BUDGET.  AND SO AND A PART OF THAT IS OUR JOB RIGHT?  SO TAKING ACCOUNTABILITY FOR MYSELF AND SAYING PAY MORE ATTENTION TO HOW THAT MONEY IS BROKEN DOWN IN FOR TRAINING IS MAYBE ASKING QUESTIONS.  AND I THINK YOU KNOW, STARTING AS A ROOKIE NOW INTO MY THIRD YEAR THEN UNDERSTANDING MORE OF LIKE THE MORE INTRICATE QUESTIONS TO GET TO THE ROOT THE CRUX OF THE ISSUES HERE SO LOOKING FORWARD TO GROWING MORE IN THIS JOB WITH YOU AND UNDERSTANDING HOW TO BE A BETTER PARTNER AND GETTING THE ISSUES RESOLVED.  AND SO WITH SAYING ALL OF THAT YOU KNOW WITH THE JOB BEING DIFFICULT AND EVERYTHING ELSE IN AND UNDERSTANDING THAT YOU ARE OBVIOUSLY COMING FROM A PLACE THAT YOU CARE AND TRYING TO FIX A PROBLEM.  IT WAS A QUICK STORY I WANTED TO SHARE WITH YOU. I AT ONE POINT MY SON AT A TIME GOT PLACED REALLY FAR AWAY FROM HOME FOR THE BUS AND SO WHAT I ENDED UP DOING IS LIKE AND AT THE TIME I THINK THE PHONES WERE LIKE NOT REALLY GOOD WITH THE CAMERAS BUT I STILL USE LIKE THE FLIP PHONE WITH THE CAMERA AND EVERYTHING AND I HAD TO VIDEOTAPE FOR THE DRIVER AND AS I WAS DRIVING I HAD MY KID AT THE TIME WHO WAS ONLY LIKE NINE SO LIKE PICK UP THE PHONE, VIDEOTAPE IT AND WE'RE GOING TO LOOK AT THE TIME GOING TO SCAN THE TIME SCAN BECAUSE THE CAMERAS AND DO ALL THAT BACK THEN AND SO LIKE SCAN THE TIME SCAN PHONE SCAN WHERE THIS STREET NAME OKAY, READY? LET'S GO. AND IT WOULD GO I CAN SEE THE SPEED LIMIT.  YOU SEE THE TIME WE SEE WHERE WE ARE YOU SEE THE STREET NAME OKAY. AND THEN WE HAD TO TIME THAT ENTIRE ROUTE ALL THE WAY TO THE ACTUAL BUS STOP TO SHOW YOU WANT MY KID TO WALK LIKE 20 MINUTES. WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU?  AND SO SOMETIMES IT'S NOT LIKE IT'S NOT INTENTIONAL MOST OF ALL THE TIME JUST TO I WOULD SAY 99% OF THE TIME IT'S REALLY ABOUT, YOU KNOW, JUST UNDERSTANDING LIKE THE MECHANICS BEHIND AND LIKE WHAT'S REALLY HAPPENING IN THE MAP IS NOT ACTUALLY MAPPING WITH REALITY AND THEN SOMETIMES IT'S THAT IT'S NOT LIKE INTENTIONALLY LIKE TRYING TO YOU KNOW, MAKE IT DIFFICULT FOR PARENTS OR FOR MONITORS OR FOR DRIVERS.  AND SO WE HOPE TO BE ABLE TO BE AN ALLY FOR YOU THAT ARE DOING THE WORK RIGHT THERE ON THE GROUND THAT ARE PROTECTING OUR CHILDREN AND WE WILL CONTINUE TO ADVOCATE FOR HIGHER PAY. WE CAN'T GET INTO COLLECTIVE BARGAINING BUT WE CAN CERTAINLY CONTINUE TO ADVOCATE AND THAT IS A VERY STRONG POSITION THAT THE COUNCIL HAS TAKEN TO SUPPORT YOU. BASEMENT BUS MONITORS AND SAME YOU ARE A PART OF THIS ECOSYSTEM TO CREATE THIS HEALTHY ENVIRONMENT, THE SAFE ENVIRONMENT FOR THE CHILDREN IN BOSTON. SO I THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR SERVICE. I THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR SERVICE AND ADVOCACY AND WE LOOK FORWARD TO CONTINUING TO WORK WITH YOU.  MR CHAIR, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO CLOSE. THANK YOU COUNCILOR , WE'RE NOT GOING TO MOVE ON TO CLOSING REMARKS AND WHAT ALLOW THE LEAD SPONSORS TO GIVE OPENING REMARKS AND THEN WE'LL ALSO JUST IF YOU WANT TO START WE'LL START WITH THE WHAT THE PANEL IF YOU HAVE ANY CLOSING REMARKS AND THEN WE'LL GO WITH COUNCILOR MEJIA AND COUNCILOR FLYNN AND THEN WE'LL ADJOURN.  SO I DON'T KNOW IF YOU HAVE ANYTHING TO SAY. THANK YOU COUNCILOR , FOR MY PART I JUST WANT TO SAY THANK YOU TO YOU ALL FOR FOR HAVING US HERE TODAY.  YOU KNOW, THANK YOU TO THE THE BUS MONITORS AND THE BUS DRIVERS AND THE PARENTS WHO ALSO CAME AND TESTIFIED AND YOU KNOW, THANK YOU TO MY MY PANELISTS HERE AS WELL WHO YOU KNOW, WHO SUPPORTED THROUGH THIS. SO I REALLY APPRECIATE IT. AND WE'RE HERE FOR THE CONTINUED WORK AND CONTINUED CONVERSATION.  I'M NOT SURE IF ANYONE ELSE WANTED TO MAKE ANY REMARKS. I'M JUST GOING TO ECHO EXACTLY WHAT DAN SAID.  SO THANK YOU TO THE COUNCILORS FOR HAVING US HERE AND GIVING US A CHANCE TO PROVIDE THAT TRANSPARENCY TO THE SOME OF THE ISSUES THAT YOU WOULD REALLY LIKE TO ADDRESS AND FOR US TO CONTINUE TO DO THE WORK THAT'S DRIVING IT FORWARD FOR EVERYBODY IN THE ROOM WHILE THE SCHOOLS IN THE SCHOOL COMMUNITIES IT'S WORK THAT WE WANT TO CONTINUE AND ENJOY DOING.  THANK YOU SO MUCH COUNCILMAN . HERE YOU HAVE A BEFORE I THINK COUNCILOR FLYNN IS THE LEAD SO I'M LEAVING HIM FOR LAST OH EVERYBODY DOES BECAUSE THEY JUST WANT TO BE RESPECTFUL.  OKAY. WELL THANK YOU.  AND YOU KNOW, I DON'T KNOW IF YOU REMEMBER DAN, I THINK YOU'VE BEEN HERE THE LONGEST. OH, I MEAN THE RECENT COMING TO HEARINGS BUT I ALWAYS HAVE BEEN SO INCREDIBLY ADVERSE TO POWERPOINT PRESENTATIONS AND IF I REMEMBER HOW WAS I DON'T COME TO YOU IN A POWERPOINT PRESENTATION JUST TALK TO ME FROM YOUR HEART BECAUSE I DON'T WANT TO HEAR ALL THIS BLAH BLAH BLAH. I STILL FEEL THAT WAY BECAUSE HONESTLY THE WORK THAT YOU HAVE TO DO IS HUMAN WORK AND ISN'T THAT LIKE WE'RE NOT ROBOTS RIGHT?  AND THEN THERE'S THIS PRECONCEIVED NOTION AND DATA IS IMPORTANT AND I LOVE COUNCILOR MORALES ALWAYS TALKING ABOUT DATA DRIVEN, YOU KNOW, WORK BUT IT PREVENTS US FROM REALLY SEEING YOU ALL AS JUST INDIVIDUALS. RIGHT? AND THERE'S THIS PERCEPTION THAT THIS HAS TO ALWAYS BE A US VERSUS THEM. BUT I THINK YOU KNOW, THE BUS MONITORS THE BUS DRIVERS YOU KNOW THE COUNCIL WE REALLY WANT ALL OF THIS TO WORK BECAUSE THE PEOPLE WHO ARE GOING TO WIN WHEN WE'RE ALL WORKING TOGETHER ARE THE FAMILIES THAT WE ALL SERVE.  AND I THINK THAT THAT SHOULD ALWAYS BE THE ULTIMATE GOAL IN THIS SPACE.  RIGHT. AND I THINK I THINK THAT PEOPLE FEEL LIKE THEY'RE WINNING WHEN THEY'RE WELL PAID. RIGHT. AND SO ONE OF THE THINGS THAT THE BUS MONITORS HAVE BEEN TALKING ABOUT, YOU KNOW, THE BUS DRIVERS AND I THINK THAT THAT IS ALSO PART OF THE EQUATION HERE THERE'S THERE'S SOME EQUITY ISSUES WHEN IT COMES TO PAY AND IT COMES TO LABOR. AND THE REASON WHY I'M JUST BRINGING IT UP HERE IS BECAUSE IT'S NOT EASY TO BE A LABORER AND TO BE THE ONES ON THE FRONT LINES HAVING TO DEAL WITH FOLKS DAY IN AND DAY OUT WHILE YOU ALL ARE ON THE INSIDE TRYING TO BUILD THE INFRASTRUCTURE TO HELP SUPPORT THE WORK THAT'S HAPPENING OUT IN THE STREETS, I THINK THAT THERE NEEDS TO BE SOME SORT OF CONVERSATION AROUND THAT AS WE'RE TALKING ABOUT EFFICIENCIES, AS WE'RE TALKING ABOUT HOW THIS ALL WORK FOR EVERYBODY. SO THERE'S SOME OF THAT THERE. I'M GOING TO LEAVE IT THERE BECAUSE THAT'S WHERE IT BELONGS AND WHOEVER IS LISTENING KNOW THAT WHEN IT COMES TO THE COLLECTIVE BARGAINING COMES TO RAISES WHEN IT COMES TO PAY, ALL OF THOSE THINGS WILL MAKE HAPPY EMPLOYEES AND THAT IN TURN THE THE RELATIONSHIP WILL FEEL FULLER.  I DON'T KNOW IF THAT MAKES ANY SENSE BUT THAT'S WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT AND I ALSO THINK I LOVE THESE HEARINGS BECAUSE WE GET TO HEAR FROM THE PEOPLE THAT ARE DOING THE WORK AND LIVE IN THE REALITIES WHICH INCLUDES THE ADMINISTRATION, THE DRIVERS, THE FAMILIES, THE PARENTS EVERYBODY WHO COMES INTO THIS PLACE INFORMS THE DECISIONS AND THE POLICIES AND THE PROTOCOLS AND THE PROCEDURES AND THE DOLLARS THAT WE FIGHT FOR. AND I THINK I'M GOING TO ENCOURAGE YOU ALL THAT THE NEXT TIME YOU COME HERE AND THIS IS JUST FOOD FOR THOUGHT TAKE IT OR LEAVE IT BUT THE HEARINGS ARE REALLY AT LEAST THE WAY I INTERPRET THEM ARE OPPORTUNITIES FOR US TO TAKE NOTES AND SO THAT WHEN WE DO MEET WITH THE SUPERINTENDENT OR WHEN WE MEET WITH THE POWERS THAT BE WHEN THEY WANT THEIR BUDGET PASSED THAT WE'RE LISTENING TO THE THINGS THAT YOU ALL NEED AND WE'RE FIGHTING FOR THOSE THINGS INSTEAD OF US COMING UP WITH LIKE HERE'S WHAT WE WANT BUT YOU PROBABLY DON'T EVEN NEED IT BECAUSE YOU PROBABLY ALREADY HAVE IT. SO UTILIZE THE SPACE TO BE AN ADVOCATE FOR YOUR DEPARTMENTS AND THE PEOPLE THAT YOU WORK WITH BECAUSE THAT INFORMATION IS IMPORTANT FOR US TO HAVE BECAUSE WE ONLY GET TO HEAR THAT WHEN WE'RE IN THESE HEARINGS. SO MORE OF THAT ASK FOR WHAT YOU NEED. I MEAN I THINK THE ATHLETIC DEPARTMENT NEEDS SOME MORE SOME MORE STAFFING.  I TELL YOU MY DAUGHTER PLAYS BASKETBALL AND SOFTBALL SO IT'S BOTH SEASONS. I'M LIKE I'M DEALING WITH THIS ISSUE AT ALL TIMES AND SOMETIMES I HAVE TO GO PICK HER UP AND THAT'S A STRAIN A FINANCIAL STRAIN ON FAMILIES WHO DON'T HAVE THE LIBERTY OF JUST GOING TO TAKE THEIR CHILD TO PLAY OR PICK THEM UP. RIGHT? SO I JUST THINK ALL OF THOSE THINGS HAVE A DOMINO EFFECT AND I THINK THAT YOU ALL NEED SOME MORE CAPACITY AND I THINK THAT WE SHOULD LOOK AT WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE AND THEY MIGHT NOT BE A YELLOW BUS, IT MIGHT JUST BE A VAN I DON'T KNOW OR TO DEPENDING ON HOW MANY TEAMMATES ARE IN THERE. SO JUST YOU KNOW, ASK FOR WHAT YOU NEED. THIS IS WHAT WE'RE HERE TO DO IS TO LISTEN TO Y'ALL AND THANK YOU. CHAIR THANK YOU, COUNSELOR FLYNN FOR BRINGING THEM TO THE YARD AND HOLDING THEM ACCOUNTABLE THE WAY YOU LIKE TO DO. WE APPRECIATE YOU.  THANK YOU. THANK YOU. COUNCILOR MEJIA, COUNSELOR FLYNN, YOU HAVE THE FLOOR.  THANK THANK YOU, MR CHAIR, FOR CHAIRING THIS IMPORTANT MEETING AND AND I THINK THIS IS ONE OF THE BEST MEETINGS I'VE BEEN TO AND YEAH, SO I WANT TO SAY THANK YOU TO YOU FOR YOUR PROFESSIONALISM DURING THE LAST 3 HOURS OR SO. VERY PRODUCTIVE.  I ALSO WANT TO SAY THANK YOU TO THE BPC TEAM THAT'S HERE AS WELL PROVIDING GOOD INFORMATION. THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT THE ROLE OF THE COUNCIL IS BACK AND FORTH LISTENING TO YOU, LEARNING FROM YOU, ASKING TOUGH QUESTIONS BUT GETTING A BETTER IDEA ABOUT WHAT'S HAPPENING AS COUNCILMEMBER HERE MENTIONED. SO WE'RE MORE PREPARED AS WE GO INTO BUDGET SEASON SO WE CAN EFFECTIVELY ADVOCATE FOR CERTAIN PROGRAMS, A CERTAIN CERTAIN SPENDING FOR A PARTICULAR PARTICULAR BUDGET THAT THAT DESPERATELY NEEDS AND LISTENING TO THE BUS MONITORS,  LISTENING TO THE LISTENING TO THE BUS DRIVERS WE KNOW THAT'S AN IMPORTANT ISSUE. THERE'S MORE WORK WE HAVE TO DO . LISTENING TO THE PANEL HERE WAS HELPFUL TO ME ALTHOUGH DISAPPOINTED THAT THE GENTLEMAN OR THE WOMAN FROM THE STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES OFFICE OR THE ACADEMIC OFFICE WASN'T HERE TO OFFER TESTIMONY ABOUT HOW DELAYS IMPACT STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES. THAT'S WHAT I REALLY WANT TO LEARN ABOUT MAKES ME A BETTER CITY COUNCILOR BUT ADVOCATE FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES. UNFORTUNATELY THAT PERSON WASN'T HERE.  IT'S NOT YOUR FAULT BUT THAT PERSON SHOULD HAVE BEEN HERE WHEN REQUESTED BY THE CHAIR SO WE CAN LEARN FROM THAT PARTICULAR PERSON THE QUESTIONS ON HOW THE DIRECT QUESTIONS THAT WE NEED TO ASK DIRECT QUESTIONS BECAUSE WE HAVE TO ADVOCATE FOR OUR CONSTITUENTS BP'S TRANSPORTATION SERVES DO THEY SERVE 20,000 STUDENTS ACROSS THE CITY EVERY DAY AND WE NEED TO ENSURE THAT THERE'S RELIABLE PREDICTABLE TRANSPORTATION FOR THEM FOR STUDENTS. WHAT DISABILITIES? IT IS UNACCEPTABLE AS WE ALL AGREE FOR ANY STUDENT TO BE PICKED UP LATE OR TO BE DRIVEN HOME LATE OR FOR A BUS NOT TO SHOW UP WE HAVE TO WORK TOGETHER TO ENSURE THAT EVERY STUDENT IN THEIR FAMILY IS TREATED WITH RESPECT.  BUT ALSO WE HAVE TO ENSURE THAT WE WORK CLOSELY WITH THE ADMINISTRATION TEAM, WITH THE BUS DRIVERS, WITH THE MONITORS AS WELL TO ENSURE THAT THEY TO ENSURE THE BUS DRIVERS AND THE MONITORS ALSO CAN MAKE A LIVING THAT THEY'RE ABLE TO PAY THEIR BILLS. I DON'T KNOW HOW SOMEONE PAYS THE BILLS ON $40,000 OR $50,000 A YEAR WITH CHILDREN AND STILL LIVING IN THE CITY. I GUESS THAT'S A THAT'S A TOPIC FOR ANOTHER DISCUSSION AND BUT PAYING SOMEONE $50,000 TO DRIVE OUR CHILDREN THE MOST VALUABLE ASSET IN THE CITY OF BOSTON IS OUR CHILDREN PENSION $50,000 A YEAR.  THAT'S AGAIN THAT'S A THAT'S A TOPIC FOR ANOTHER CONVERSATION WE CAN DO BETTER. BUT AGAIN JUST WANT TO SAY THANK YOU CHAIR FOR THE PROFESSIONAL WORK YOU DID AS CHAIR OF THIS THIS HEARING TODAY.  THANK YOU FOR YOUR COUNCILOR MY FRIEND. APPRECIATE THAT.  I JUST WANT TO THANK OUR PANELISTS AND AS LONG HEARING AND IT WAS A LOT OF WORK TO BE DONE I JUST REALLY WANT TO THANK ALL OF YOU FOR BEING HERE STICKING THROUGH IT. I REALLY WANT TO THANK MY COLLEAGUES FOR BEING HERE. WELL, I THINK MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC FOR THEIR TESTIMONY ARE OUR BUS DRIVERS WHO HAVE STUCK THROUGH THIS LONG HEARING AND OUR BUS MONITORS AS WELL.  AND I WANT TO THANK COUNCILOR FLYNN, MURPHY AND MCGUIRE FOR SPONSORING THIS HEARING AS WELL. THIS HEARING ON DOCKET NUMBER 0705 AND DOCKETS NUMBER 1349 IS ADJOURNED. THANK YOU