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South San Antonio ISD board approves purchase of three 71‑passenger Thomas buses
Summary
Trustees approved buying three Thomas 71‑passenger buses at $160,750 each through the BuyBoard cooperative contract to replace aging vehicles and bolster daily routes; the purchase passed unanimously.
South San Antonio ISD’s Board of Trustees voted unanimously April 14 to purchase three 71‑passenger Thomas buses at $160,750 each, using the BuyBoard cooperative contract (No. 722‑23).
The vote authorizes the district to buy the buses to supplement a fleet the district says currently includes 44 buses, about 10 of which are more than 15 years old. Executive Director of Operations Andy Rocha told the board the buses include a seven‑year unlimited‑miles transmission warranty and a five‑year engine warranty up to 100,000 miles. Rocha said the district runs roughly 26 buses each morning and that adding three vehicles will give the transportation operation more leeway for midday runs, field trips and breakdowns.
Board members pressed staff on fleet condition, prior purchases and alternative technologies. Rocha said the district bought eight buses under a Volkswagen‑funded grant in February 2021 and that many buses in the yard date from 2015–2016. He described electric buses as a possible future option but said infrastructure upgrades and utility coordination would be required before the district could pursue electrification. Trustees also asked about air‑conditioning reliability and special‑education requirements; Rocha said most buses have air conditioning but repairs and parts availability sometimes limit immediate fixes, and that a significant portion of the fleet supports special‑education transports that can require lifts or different routing.
Trustees asked about delivery timing; staff said funding and vendor availability made quicker delivery possible and that the district could likely take delivery in a few weeks. Rocha and board members discussed a multi‑year replacement cadence; one trustee observed that replacing roughly three buses per year would help avoid large concentrations of aging vehicles.
The board approved the purchase by roll call (Raymond Tijerina: yes; Carla Gomez Sanchez: yes; Darryl Balderrama: yes; Aurelina Prado: yes; Jesus Rendon III: yes; Adrian Guerra: yes; Dr. Kelly Murguia: yes). Staff said the district intends to continue seeking budget capacity to replace buses regularly so the fleet does not accumulate older vehicles.
The purchase will be executed through the BuyBoard cooperative contract with Thomas Bus; final delivery and implementation details will be handled by the operations office.
