County to replace aging transit buses and donate unused wheelchair bus to Fort Bayard Medical Center

Grant County transit staff told commissioners on May 6 they plan to replace three 14‑passenger buses (each with two wheelchair positions) and one side‑entry minivan, purchases that are grant‑funded and will be brought forward for approval at the commission’s regular meeting.

Transit staff said the buses will replace aging vehicles: two 2013 buses (one with more than 200,000 miles and another with about 289,000 miles, both with damaged, inoperable wheelchair lifts) and a 2015 bus with recurring electrical problems. The replacement buses were priced at roughly $132,000 each in the presentation; the side‑entry minivan price shown was $68,800. Transit Director said the county will purchase the vehicles from Creative Bus Sales in Albuquerque by piggybacking an Oklahoma state price contract because the New Mexico DOT contract renewal has been delayed.

Staff said the purchases are contained within existing program grant funding; because they exceed the transit director’s procurement authority, the county will place the purchase before the board for approval. Commissioners asked whether the county had examined alternative fuels or electric options; transit staff said they had researched electric and propane but concluded local repair capacity and higher repair costs currently make those options infeasible for the county’s rural operations: “the technology just isn’t quite there yet. The repair costs are astronomical,” the director said.

Separately, staff asked the commission to approve donating a separate, previously procured wheelchair‑accessible transport van to Fort Bayard Medical Center to support transportation for veterans. County staff said the van has low mileage and had been difficult to place in local service through existing providers; Fort Bayard leaders said they would use the van to transport veterans at their facility and the transfer would comply with the vehicle’s original grant funding purpose so long as the van continues to serve veterans.

What was decided: Commissioners did not take final procurement votes during the work session; transit staff said they will bring the grant‑funded vehicle purchases and the donation for formal approval at the regular meeting.

Next steps: Staff will present formal purchase and donation resolutions for commission approval and will continue to monitor alternative‑fuel vehicle readiness for future procurements.