Some students in Leander ISD who previously rode buses may have to begin walking to school when the 2016-17 school year is underway.

The LISD board of trustees voted to discontinue portions of some bus routes in the spring, which will impact a dozen neighborhoods throughout Cedar Park and Leander. Some of those discontinuations were because of completed construction on local roadways and updates to the district’s software, LISD Senior Communication Specialist Jennifer Bailey said.

Bailey said the Texas Education Agency does not provide funding for buses to pick up students who live less than 2 miles from their school unless the routes are deemed hazardous. She said the LISD board of trustees conducts a hazardous routing review every year, and a committee decides whether to recommend changes or discontinuations for any sections of bus routes.

Jimmy Disler, LISD’s senior executive director of operations, told the LISD board in an April meeting that there were a higher number of routes recommended for discontinuation this year than in the past. He said the majority were caused by road improvements along Bagdad Road and Crystal Falls Parkway.

“It’s just amazing the number of improvements on the roadways and the sidewalks,” he said.

The areas affected include routes to Christine Camacho Elementary School, Westside Elementary School, Whitestone Elementary School, Cedar Park Middle School, Henry Middle School, Leander Middle School, Leander High School and Vista Ridge High School, according to district documents.

The board discussed and approved the discontinued routes during meetings in April, and letters to parents within the affected neighborhoods were mailed out May 2.

The neighborhoods are all less than 2 miles from their campus but previously received transportation services, meaning the routes lacked adequate sidewalks or crossing signals and were deemed hazardous, Bailey said. Because of completed construction on some nearby roadways that improved walking conditions, the routes are no longer labeled as hazardous, she said.

For example, students living in the Camden at Brushy Creek Apartments live less than 2 miles from Henry Middle School and Vista Ridge High School, but the area previously received transportation services. Since sidewalks were constructed along Brushy Creek Road, the route is no longer deemed hazardous, Bailey said.

A handful of the routes were also changed because the district began using new, more accurate software, which determined that some neighborhoods were outside of the area eligible for bus service, Bailey said.

Cedar Park resident Raquel Hubbard lives in the High Meadows neighborhood at the corner of West New Hope Drive and South Bagdad. Her neighborhood became ineligible for bus service to LHS because of the completion of sidewalks on Bagdad, according to district documents.

She said her son, a sophomore at LHS, has ridden the bus for years and does not yet have his driver’s license. Hubbard said she is nervous for him to walk to school along Bagdad.

“I think it’s going to be very dangerous for him to be walking from our house to Leander High School,” she said. “...he has to cross Bagdad, which is a very busy road.”

When the district mailed out notices in May, the letters included a map of the neighborhood affected and a suggested walking route.

“The district does recommend walking routes, but we don’t have any other steps to take as far as once the [bus] route is no longer in service,” Bailey said.

The board approved changes for 15 routes throughout Cedar Park and Leander. District staff also recommended discontinuing bus service for Cedar Park High School and Cedar Park Middle School students living in the Bella Vista neighborhood once construction of sidewalks on Dies Ranch Road and Anderson Mill Road is completed.