Propel officials trying to find way to safely get students to class after Penn Hills bus route cut

BRADDOCK HILLS, Pa. — A new school year is just weeks away and a local charter school is still trying to find a safe way to get students to and from class.

Two weeks ago, Penn Hills officials announced they were cutting bus routes to save money. Now, Propel students will have to ride a PRT bus Downtown, switch buses, and then ride back out to Braddock Hills.

Between walking and riding, that commute to school is more than two hours long.

>>> Penn Hills School District cutting bus routes for upcoming school year

School leaders don’t think this decision is fair and are speaking up to make sure it doesn’t happen to other charter schools.

“We ask them to transport our scholars via yellow school bus,” said Dr. Tina Chekan, superintendent of Propel Schools.

Chekan met with the Penn Hills superintendent as they push for a solution to route cuts.

“We changed our start [so] that they will have our elementary and middle and high school kids ride together which will create some cost savings for them.”

The routes Penn Hills opted to cut five routes to save $400,000. The eliminated routes impact the following schools:

• Life Male STEAM Academy
• Westinghouse Arts Academy Charter School
• Propel Andrew Street High School
• Propel Braddock Hills
• Environmental Charter School

These cut routes impact around 3% of students who live in Penn Hills but attend charter schools. Chekan says that decision puts students in danger.

“We walked this route on Saturday. It took 41 minutes to walk. there are no sidewalks here in Penn Hills, and it creates a hazardous situation,” she said.

For some students, the closest PRT bus stop is a 40-minute walk from home. And they’ll often need to catch a bus downtown then transfer to another bus.

Donte Kyles has two kids who go to Propel Braddock Hills.

“It’s unsafe for them to be Downtown, and what I want to know is they would send their kids on PRT early in the morning,” he said.

A local lawmaker has the same concerns and is now looking at a change to state law.

“It almost feels like this is a punishment for choosing a school that might be better suited to a students needs,” said State Rep Natalie Mihlea. “Right now parents are very panicked and we are letting them know we are working with the school district but what really needs to happen is a legislative fix.”

Administrators have just 14 days to come to a resolution before classes begin.

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