August 8 , 2008 Contact: Kim Upton/Marc Littman Metro Media Relations 213.922.2703/213.922.2700 www.metro.net/pressroom

Save Money by Driving the Kids Back to Class with Metro School Pool

With $4-a-gallon gas at the pumps, it doesn't take a calculator to figure out there will be a dramatic hike in the cost of driving kids to and from school this fall. So why not join Metro’s School Pool carpool program? If your school hasn't already enrolled, encourage it to do so.

Not only will you save lots of money. You will save time. A school carpool can also help improve the health of our children, since fewer cars will be spewing harmful emissions into the air for kids to breathe.

It’s easy to join a Metro School Pool. The program is free and voluntary. Encourage your school to sign up for either the confidential matching service or the carpool directory -- a school-specific student directory sorted by city or street to help parents find potential carpool partners. Both of these options are offered to all elementary, middle and high schools in L.A. County. Just sign up at school. If your school has not yet joined the School Pool Program, have your administrators call Metro Commute Services, (213) 922-2811.

To participate in the matching service, parents or guardians fill out a short form and return it to school administrators. Families then receive a list of others at their school who are interested in carpooling, by general location. Home addresses are confidential and are not shared. Only phone numbers are provided. Parents can then contact families on the list to meet and establish carpooling arrangements, including pick-up and drop-off points, carpool cost-sharing and driving responsibilities. Parent/guardians share the task of driving students to and from school. Metro School Pool does not transport children to school.

If the carpool directory is a better option for your school, Metro will assist in formatting the directory so that parents can more easily find other parents interested in carpooling in their own cities or along their route to school.

As a bonus, the first schools to enroll in Metro School Pool will be eligible to receive tickets to Magic Mountain.

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Editors Note: “Metro” should be used when referring to this agency.

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