Bus Routes

The Nicholasville City Commission showed its wisdom when it chose to take a wait-and-see approach to the much talked about intersection at Oak Street and Central Avenue. Some weeks back, the commission received a report from Goshen, Ky.-based Jordan, Jones & Goulding Inc., to conduct a traffic study and submit suggestions. The company suggested making the intersection an all-way stop, but that would only add to the existing traffic problem. Some residents have suggested making Oak Street into one-way traffic, which does nothing more than pawn the traffic problem to another part of the city.

So far this year, students in Lincoln County have missed eight days of school because of bad weather, but in some cases, the schools were closed because  just a few roads were unsafe for bus travel. Back roads, such as Fishing Creek Road in the Kings Mountain community, often have conditions that many, who live on main and secondary roads in Lincoln County, do not often see. Conditions such as these have caused the district’s school transportation department to dismiss school on some days when a majority of other roads are clear.

New technology is on the horizon for the school system's bus fleet that will go a long way in cutting down on student misbehavior on buses, school officials said. If approved, the technology will include a better video camera system that will allow much improved surveillance on buses. The proposed system has advantages, such as online access for parents to check bus route changes and possibly even track the progression of the bus on its route. Chris Bellman, transportation director, and Owen Saylor, assistant superintendent, outlined the proposal in a special presentation to the school board Monday night.

Warner Elementary School will soon undergo a substantial face lift, the last major school-construction project for Jessamine County in a string that began with a new middle school four and a half years ago. Two architectural firms made presentations to the Jessamine County Board of Education at its monthly work session Monday night, both vying to be chosen for the renovation project at the board's regular meeting April 22. The string of recent...

By BRENDA S. EDWARDS brenda@amnews.com STANFORD - A new mapping system that will assist genealogists in their search for family cemeteries in Lincoln County is in place and can be accessed via computer at Harvey Helm Memorial Library. The new project will be unveiled 6 p.m. Tuesday at Harvey Helm Memorial Library in Stanford. David Gambrel, county property valuation administrator; the library and Bluegrass Area Development District have partnered to make this information available.

With fuel prices climbing every day, school systems are adjusting their budgets and schedules in ways they never thought necessary. Webster County and Jenkins Independent have switched to four-day school weeks, a drastic change that has saved money for both. Here at home, local school systems are feeling the sting, too, and some are even taking preemptive measures to combat rising costs, though none has yet decided to follow Webster County and Jenkins Independent's lead. Burgin Independent, the area's smallest school system by a large margin, said at its June 11 board of education meeting, however passively, that Webster County's four-day school week model is an intelligent idea worth examining.

As a new school year begins in Jessamine County and school buses hit the road once again, the school's department of transportation is asking drivers to be a little more cautious on the roads. Assuring the safety of the children on the buses is the responsibility of everyone on the road, not just the bus drivers. So, if your daily commute to work involves driving along one of the county's school bus routes, leave a little earlier and take a few more minutes to allow for bus traffic.

Construction of a new dam at Lock No. 9 in Jessamine County will ensure a water supply for thousands in the Lexington area, but residents of Camp Daniel Boone Road near Spears could feel negative effects during the two-year project. The new Dam No. 9 will replace the deteriorating existing dam, which was built in 1903 and will be left in place. Cement trucks will start rolling down the winding, one-lane Camp Daniel Boone Road in three weeks, and residents worry the machinery will back up traffic and further damage pavement that is already crumbling in some places.

Filling up at the pump has become an increasingly painful experience for many Jessamine Countians, but the rising costs of fuel could put a strain on local schools too. Last year, Jessamine County school buses drove more than 1.1 million miles and used 180,000 gallons of diesel fuel, said Chris Bellman, director of transportation for the district. "Fuel prices are always a concern, but so far we have been able to make budgetary adjustments for the rising prices," he said. The district purchases fuel at wholesale prices, which are determined by bids from vendors approximately every three months.

The school day will start a little earlier for elementary students across Clark County this year, but middle and high-schoolers will get some extra sleep, as the Board of Education approved new school times to begin in August. Elementary students will now attend school from 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., middle school students from 8:45 a.m. to 3:45 p.m. and high school students from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. The change was made to facilitate adjustments in bus routes, said Danny Fisher, transportation director.