WJCC reviews $1.42 million request to buy nine replacement school buses

The Williamsburg-James City County School Division on Tuesday reviewed a request to buy nine replacement school buses from Sonny Merriman Inc. for $1,421,497, funding that was included in the FY 2026 Capital Improvement Program.

School division transportation presenter Mr. Snipes told the board the purchase would replace buses that exceed the state’s recommended replacement threshold of 15 years or 150,000 miles and that the order includes four 77-passenger and five 53-passenger buses under state contract number E194-90742. "The item being brought for your consideration is a review of request to purchase 9 school buses from Sonny Merriman in the amount of $1,421,497," Snipes said.

Why it matters: replacing older buses affects fleet reliability, spare-vehicle capacity and the division’s capital budget. The division uses CIP funds for this purchase, which cannot be repurposed for operating expenses, staff said.

Board members asked whether the buses are still mechanically sound and whether delaying replacement could save money. "Are any of these 9 buses, are they all mechanically still sound that we can use them if we didn't replace them?" asked board member Mr. Jose. Staff replied the buses are still operable but meet the age and mileage threshold that triggers replacement under state guidance.

Board members also raised the long-term choice between diesel and electric buses. A staff member said diesel buses remain the preferred option for now because available charging infrastructure and routing needs have not produced a reliable return on investment, even with available rebates. "We have not found to this point that utilization of e-buses is a good return on our return on investment even with rebates and credits that may be available," a staff presenter said. Another board member said state law may eventually require electric buses.

Staff described the disposition plan for replaced vehicles: the nine buses would go to surplus and could be listed for sale; staff estimated typical resale at about $2,000 to $5,000 per bus. The division reported an approximate total fleet of 150 buses with roughly 15% held as spares (about 135 operational buses) and said a recent transponder routing study estimated a need of about 121–125 buses.

No formal vote on the purchase was recorded at the meeting; the superintendent recommended the board review the request and be prepared to vote at the Aug. 5, 2025 meeting. The purchase timeline would likely place delivery about 12 months after order if approved.

Board members and staff stressed the distinction between capital and operating funding and noted driver shortages and spare-vehicle needs as separate issues that affect service reliability.