As we move into our second year of operation, I want to reaffirm that one of Taxi Mom Families’ primary goals is to spread awareness of school transportation issues and how they impact families.

Approximately 60% of the children in Texas are economically disadvantaged and at risk, according to a report published by the Texas Education Agency in 2021.  Bus driver shortages plague Texas schools, largely because of the continuing COVID pandemic. Even as the economy begins to improve overall, many parents remain unemployed or underemployed, still fighting to meet their family’s most basic needs while prices keep rising.

In Texas, children who live less than two miles from their school must either depend on someone to drive them to school each day, walk, or take public transit, because public school buses do not pick up within that two-mile radius.

Most parents need to work, and even though many people can now work from home, some jobs – remote customer service call centers, for example – require employees to be online for the full duration of their shift. Which means parents must use their breaks to run kids back and forth to school, or in the case of onsite workers, leave work to either take children to school or pick them up in the afternoon. In either case, the parent could be putting her job at risk.

Children walking to school or to a public bus stop face their own challenges, especially if they live in an unsafe neighborhood. Kids on the street must cope with the weather, may be bullied by other children, or could fall prey to adults with bad intentions. In 2020, over 37,000 children were reported missing in Texas.

Taxi Mom Families is committed to assisting children at risk by providing access to reduced-cost shuttle transportation for families in need, through our network of approved transportation providers. But we need your help. We need your help to raise awareness of the issues. We need your help to cover the costs of transportation for these children. We need your help to reduce stress among parents by providing reliable rides to and from school.We ask you to join us in our efforts. You may make a one-time donation here or contact us to become a sustaining donor. We thank you, and the families we serve thank you.