Thomas works in special education at Thomas M. Peirce Elementary School, only a few minutes drive from her home. But every morning, she makes four stops in her 2016 Chevrolet Cruze: She drops her grandmother off at a bus stop, takes her daughter to school, takes her infant to day care, and finally goes to work. The stops aren’t far from each other, but relying on public transportation would be a project, she said.