Attachment 1February 2018
TOWN OF LOS GATOS
CONGESTION RELIEF SCHOOL BUS
SERVICE FEASIBILITY STUDY
0
SURVEY 1 FINAL REPORT
GOAL:Evaluate the school community’s interest in a local school bus
service; with the primary goal of reducing traffic congestion near schools.
WHO: Survey was designed by SBC and The Town of Los Gatos.
Stakeholders include LGUSD, LGSUHSD, SR2S, Home and School Clubs,
Hillbrook School, and many others.
FOCUS: Survey was disseminated to more than 8,000 parents of LGHS and
LGUSD students. The survey was promoted through social media and the
local newspaper. A total of 1,355 responses were received.
WHEN: The survey was open between
January 17th and February 4 th , 2018.
1
SCOPE OF SURVEY
Highly Likely, Likely
and Maybe
YES
NO
Unlikely and
Highly Unlikely
1. Do you have a child or children attending Blossom Hill
Elementary, Daves Avenue Elementary, Lexington Elementary,
Louise Van Meter Elementary, R.J. Fisher Middle School, and / or
Los Gatos High School? Please check all that apply.
4. In the afternoon, which of the
following best describes how the
student or students in your
household get home from school
most of the time? Please check all
that apply.
2. Thank you for your interest in this
program. At this time we are most
interested in input from households with
students at the schools previously listed.
However, if you are still interested in this
program as a community member, or
think it can benefit other schools, please
provide any thoughts or comments
below.
7. Please indicate the reason(s) for
your disinterest in school bus service
for your student(s): Please check all
that apply.
3. In the morning, which of the
following best describes how the
student or students in your
household get to school most of the
time? Please check all that apply.
5. If a school bus service (as previously described) was provided
today, how likely would you be to subscribe at least one of your
student(s) to the service? Please check one.
6. Please indicate the school(s) for which you would be
interested in school bus service: Please check all that apply.
8. Please provide the cross streets closest to your household
(for example, "Main St" and "1st Ave").
+
2
SURVEY DESIGN
Questions 3 and 4: Mode of Transportation
0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%
Other (please specify)
Student drives themselves
Uses private commercial transportation
Uses public transportation
Driven as part of a car pool
Driven by a parent
Walk
Bicycle
Sum of Afternoon
Sum of Morning
o There were 1299 responses to this question. “Driven by Parent” received 999
responses. “Walk” received 392 responses. ”Bicycle received 231 responses.
o Other / write -in responses include: skateboard or scooter (8 responses); uses
Loma Prieta bus (9); and driven in the afternoon due to afterschool activities (10).
3
CURRENT MODES OF TRANSPORTATION
INTEREST IN SERVICE
150
116
65
122
415 432
Blossom Hill
Elementary
Daves
Avenue
Elementary
Lexington
Elementary
Louise Van
Meter
Elementary
R.J. Fisher
Middle
School
Los Gatos
High School
0.00%
5.00%
10.00%
15.00%
20.00%
25.00%
30.00%
35.00%
40.00%
45.00%
Question 6: Interest Level per School
81% of respondents said they were
interested in school bus service to some
degree: a total 1,047 respondents.
Service interest is highest among
secondary schools: a trend that
follows enrolment size and larger
attendance boundaries.
4
5
INTEREST IN SERVICE: LOS GATOS HIGH
6
INTEREST IN SERVICE: R.J. FISHER
7
INTEREST IN SERVICE: BLOSSOM HILL
8
INTEREST IN SERVICE: DAVES AVENUE
9
INTEREST IN SERVICE: LEXINGTON
10
INTEREST IN SERVICE: VAN METER
COMMUNITY DISINTEREST IN SERVICE
93
66
45
23
26
27
32
128
Other (please specify)
My child(ren) has many after school activities and we need
flexibility in his/her/their schedule
I feel more comfortable personally dropping off and picking my
child(ren)
I am concerned about the safety of school bus transportation
I am concerned about student behavior on the bus and how it
would be effectively managed
I would need to know more about this school bus service before
becoming interested
I am concerned about how much this school bus service would
cost my family
My child(ren) walk(s) and / or bike(s) to school, which I prefer.
0%10%20%30%40%50%60%
Question 7: Reasons for Disinterest
o “Disinterested” and “Highly Disinterested” made up 19% of the respondents: 250 in
total.
o Respondents could choose multiple reasons for their disinterest.
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COMMUNITY COMMENTARY
Most common comments from community members:
o Support for congestion relief and safety
Residents who are affected by the traffic directly and parents who would
benefit from the service expressed support for the service. Most of the residents
who support the service live on streets severely affected by school traffic.
o Future demand
Families with children coming in to one of the schools indicated that they
would like to see a service in the future.
o Service from the Santa Cruz Mountains
Several parents live in the Santa Cruz Mountains expressed interest in having
bus service to Fisher Middle School and /or LGHS.
o Objections and/or concerns
Some are against or have concerns regarding the service because of the cost
to tax payers.
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Comments were summarized from survey respondents’ input and community input to the project’s email address.