Buses still a problem in Waluga neighborhood

The Oregonian reports about the dangers of tailpipe pollution from diesel school buses that harm the students they carry.  They did not say anything about the neighbors of the lots where buses are stored, and where they start, warm their engines, and drive in and out of every weekday morning and afternoon during the school year. 

In Lake Oswego, school buses are operated by First Student, a private company that contracts with the Lake Oswego School District for its bus service.  The lot for the buses has always been behind Lake Grove Elementary School on school district property.  As the district has grown over the years, the number of buses added to the fleet has grown also.  

Unfortunately, the bus lot is in a residential neighborhood and next door to an elementary school.  Besides the perils mentioned in the Oregonian article for kids who are merely riding the buses, imagine the problems for neighbors, and kids at Lake Grove School who must tolerate a polluted environment every day.   

The school district and the city are aware of the problem, but they say they have no other option for housing the buses.  There is an industrial zone by the freeway (and in Foothills) that can house buses, or does the lot have to be in Lake Oswego?  Why hasn't there been a serious plan developed to get the buses, pollution, traffic and noise out of the Waluga neighborhood? Along with deferred maintenance on elementary and Jr.High schools and educational needs, the expenses for state-required transportation are costly. This does not mean the problem shouldn't be dealt with.

Aging school buses haul perils and kids
The Oregonian/Oregonlive, February 8, 2015 By Rob Davis

Almost half of Oregon's school buses spew unhealthy amounts of diesel fumes into the air, exposing tens of thousands of children to cancer-causing exhaust in every ride.

A review by The Oregonian/OregonLive of state data Found that 3,300 of Oregon's school buses were build before 2007, when federal rules for emissions tightened.

The state has equipped only 600 of those with tailpipe filters that eliminate most pollution.

"From a policy standpoint, it boils down to economics - as much as I don't like it," said Michael Wiltfing, the Oregon Department of Education's transportation director.  "Choosing between a teacher and a bus, the bus is often the one that is postponed."

State law doesn't require taking the old buses out of commission until 2015.  A kindergartener will be in high school by then.

Read the entire article including data on regulatory policies, chemical pollutants and specific health hazards (cancer, asthma) at OregonLive.com.

OregonLive has a link to a state database of information for each school district's buses.  Here is where LO stands:

• Lake Oswego has 51 buses total.  
• 40 buses are pre-2007 when stricter pollution regulations were enacted for school diesel buses.
• 16 buses are 2007 or newer.
• 40% of old buses (16) have been retrofitted with diesel particulate filters.
• 23 old buses (about half of the LO fleet of 51 buses) do not meet current pollution standards.