On Thursday morning, some students at Felix Leclerc High School in Pointe-Claire had one of their last rides on the school bus that picks them on Hurteau St. Starting next fall, they will instead take an STM bus to school, a decision made by the Marguerite-Bourgeoys School Service Centre. As a parent of a 14-year-old student, Jag Singh said he was caught off guard when he received an email from the school service centre several weeks ago. “I was astonished, basically without any consultation with the parents, that they’ve made such a huge decision to remove a service which a lot of parents rely on, that basically takes our children to school securely,” he said. Singh said the current system is safe and convenient for the dozens of students who live in area. Parent have an app that tells them when the bus is coming and whether their child is on board. Starting Sept. 1, he said students will have to walk further and cross St-Jean Boulevard during rush hour to board the 230 bus. Singh said safety isn’t his only concern. “With no fixed bus timetable and just getting on with the general population, there’s no guarantee that she’s actually going to make school on time,” he added. In a statement to CTV News, the Marguerite-Bourgeoys School Service Centre said, “Analyses show that, on average, travel time will remain comparable to the current situation…We also believe this transition will allow students to develop their independence in getting around….all eligible students can have their OPUS card encoded free of charge, giving them access to the public transit network seven days a week, throughout the school year.” The centre added that nearly all of its high schools already use the STM to transport some students. Parent Lewis Hopps said he tried out the new route with his 14-year-old twins and was not impressed. “My intention was to ride the bus back with them and just to see how it was, and we couldn’t even get on the bus,” he said. “The kids were packed in, and they were running from every corner. They were literally shoving each other in to get the doors closed.” Hopps is among dozens of parents have signed a petition asking the school service centre to reconsider its decision. “I felt we should have at least been consulted before,” he said. Eligible students will be able to get their OPUS cards encoded in August before they go into effect Sept. 1.
