AUBURN – The director of Support Services for local schools said Wednesday that parents had complained about students riding in buses that were too crowded.

But that’s not true, Billy Hunter told the School Committee.

He said he went out and counted students on buses. “The most I got was 66. She can haul 77.”

Regulations say the maximum number of K-6 students allowed is 77; the maximum for older students is 65.

“It looks full because you see a lot of heads, and it’s three to a seat,” Hunter said.

Adding to parents’ concerns, “kids are lugging a lot of stuff to school,” Superintendent Tom Morrill said.

Some parents assume their children and their backpacks should have a place on the seat, or shouldn’t have to share seats. The school department does not have that luxury, officials said.

School Committee members said they had heard complaints that students ride too long on buses.

Hunter said students do not ride more than 50 minutes, which current school policy allows. Most ride less.

To conserve fuel, Auburn buses try to make fewer left turns. A study done by UPS showed left turns mean drivers sit and wait longer to cross traffic. There’s often no wait with right turns, Hunter said. Less waiting means fuel savings, he said. It won’t be significant, “but a savings is a savings.”

Several years ago, Auburn consolidated routes for middle and high school students. Putting middle and high school students on the same buses has meant nearly a 20 percent fuel savings, Hunter said.

City Councilor Ron Potvin, who serves as the mayor’s representative on the board, asked if more bus stops could be consolidated. He lives on Northern Avenue and sees buses pick up students every few houses.

That could be done, Hunter said, adding that some parents would have concerns, and the savings would be minimal because no miles would be cut.

School Committee member Thomas Kendall asked if new technology for alternative fuel, such as hydro, was being explored. With budgets growing tighter, Kendall asked Hunter to get an estimate on the savings if high school bus routes were eliminated.

Hunter said he’d have his staff look into hydro, and that estimates have been done on stopping busing to Edward Little. The savings were not substantial, he said, because drivers already cover some of the same roads for middle school students.

In other business, committee member Jason Pawlina suggested that after-school day-care costs be reduced on Wednesday afternoons, since that’s a time students in other districts are in school.

Andi Locke-Mears, who heads up the day care for Auburn schools, said cutting the $7.50 afternoon fee would not be wise because the program needs the money to keep going, and that would undercut other day-care centers in the city. Parents who ask for reduced fees often get them, she said.

At that, most committee members said they were not interested in reducing the Wednesday afternoon fee.