Southwest Allen County Schools approves no-transportation zones

The Southwest Allen County Schools school board approved the establishment and enforcement of three more no-transportation zones by a vote of 5-0 Tuesday night. 

Those three schools - Deer Ridge and Covington Elementary schools and Woodside Middle School - will be subject to a 1-mile no-transportation zone for the elementary schools and a 1.5-mile no-transportation zone for middle schools, according to the resolution.

The newly approved no-transportation zones are part of an effort to streamline bus transportation in an era of state mandated tax caps which limit the amount of tax money that can be specifically collected for school transportation.

In SACS' case, the district has been unable to collect $291,000 in 2015 alone, a number predicted to double by 2017, according to the district.

By moving these three schools into no-transportation zones along with the no-transportation zones enforced this year for Summit Middle School and Homestead High School, the district estimates it will save about $200,000 per year, said David Rarick, SACS director of transportation and communications.