Getting to ride the "big school bus," is a much-loved tradition at kindergarten round-ups everywhere.

But within the next few years, it could be a thing of the past for some local students.

That's because the Camas School District is exploring the possibility of creating a one-mile walk zone, in an effort to control rising transportation costs and falling state reimbursements for bus service.

"The bigger the district is, the more disparity there is between reimbursement and cost to transport the students," Assistant Superintendent Tanis Knight said. "We're definitely not the only district out there with transportation funding concerns."

For example, this past year the Washougal School District slashed its transportation budget by switching to an all-day, every other day kindergarten program and eliminated boundary exceptions between Gause and Hathaway elementary schools for a total $161,000 of estimated savings.

Read the rest of the story in the March 9 issue of the Post-Record