FCCPS adjusts bus schedule after chaotic first two weeks

This year, George Mason has undergone another change in the high school bell schedule. The start of the school day is now at 8:05 a.m. — only a five minute difference from last year’s 8:00 a.m. start time — and yet the day feels so much longer this year because of a new bus schedule.

For the first two weeks of school, the bus pickups and dropoffs were inconsistent and posed a number of problems for students. However, on Monday, September 19, FCCPS announced that on the afternoon bus runs, Mason and MEH students will indeed ride the bus together — a solution to some of the problems posed by the new schedule.

The new bus schedule presented three problems for students: First, buses drop students off around 7:32 a.m., approximately 25 minutes before the morning bell, which is eight minutes longer of time than last year. Even with the new adjustment of September 19, this problem will still exist.

During the first two weeks, buses picked up students 30 minutes after the last bell of the day, which was 25 minutes longer than last year, according to many Mason students. Thirdly, the afternoon bus pickup was inconsistent, which presented scheduling problems for students.

After speaking with three Junior and Senior bus riders, (all take different buses) they each said that their buses arrive at Mason 10 minutes earlier than the time they arrived last year.

To check this, I waited at Mason three different days in the morning to time exactly when the first bus riders would arrive. The average arrival time was around 7:32. Last year, I was a rider of the first bus to arrive at Mason. That bus would arrive around 7:40 every day, and its riders were always the first in the halls.

The total non-school waiting time in the morning alone is a little above two hours a week.

The afternoon system last year was fast, consistent, and most of all, the buses would get students home at a reasonable time. This year, students feel that entire idea of of speed and order has completely gone out the window. The schedule adjustment is expected to help the inconsistency of the afternoon bus rides.

“There’s enough time to walk home in the time spent waiting for the bus” said Sophomore Ryan Fry, referring to the first two weeks of school.

According to the new schedule from FCCPS, the afternoon buses will depart GM/MEH at 3:12 p.m. During the first two weeks of school, students reported that some of the buses are arriving around 30 minutes after school. However, the next day, that same bus arriving 30 minutes after school, may arrive 20 minutes after school. The inconsistency means one day a student could get home at 3:25 but the next day at 3:45. This alone is a scheduling nightmare to the families of Falls Church.

“Last year I’d take the bus home and get there by 3:15 about, last week however, I got home at 4:00. Lets just say I’ll be walking home from now on because the buses are pretty much useless as it takes less time to walk for 20 minutes instead” said Junior Lucas Barthel.

“If I’m working on homework after school at Mason, I never know when to go outside to meet the bus” said Junior Cara McFall after explaining how her bus never arrives at Mason at the same time.

If one adds the unpredictable amount of time waiting for a bus after school to the 25 minutes of waiting at Mason before school and students are looking at around 45 minutes of waiting every day. That’s three hours and 45 minutes every week spent just waiting at Mason, not including bus ride times.

Not only is the bus schedule damaging to a student’s schedule, but it also presents a huge concern to our security staff at Mason. During Mustang Block, all of the security staff is up and moving making sure that our halls stay safe and keeping the moving Mustang Block crowds in line. What this new bus schedule creates is a longer period in the morning before class for students to go where they please without supervision.

The purpose of the bell schedule changes are to align the Mason schedule with the Mary Ellen Henderson Middle School schedule so that MEH students taking classes at Mason can go to Mason without missing any of their classes back at MEH. There are 45 of these inter-school students (at start of 2016-17 school year). To align the schedules of Mason and MEH, the start times must be around the same time.

However, at the start of the year, because many in Falls Church voiced concerns about middle school students on the same bus as high schoolers, the two school’s transportation systems were divided. Meaning in the morning Mason kids get picked up and dropped off first, then the MEH bus routes take place immediately after. In the afternoon, buses leave with MEH students first, then come back to pick up the Mason students. The new bus schedule emphasizes consistency and efficiency.