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Board hears transportation update: fleet, in‑house routing and roughly $200,000 added cost for new academy routes
Summary
Transportation staff reported a fully in‑house routing structure, 31‑bus fleet (mostly propane), and staffing levels; adding transportation for Superior Learning Academy is expected to cost 'just under $200,000' next year and the district plans to buy two special‑education buses.
Pat, the district transportation lead, told the Committee of the Whole that the district now runs all routes in-house after bringing routes back from Voyager and currently operates 31 buses across 28 daily routes with 26 full‑time drivers and aides.
"Currently, we're at 26 full time drivers for full time aids," Pat said, outlining fleet composition (nine diesel, 22 propane) and an average vehicle age of six years and roughly 112,000 miles. Pat described operational changes this year including a switch to Ferrellgas for propane supply, efforts to bring bus washing in‑house after the local commercial wash limited public access, and migration of routing software to a web-based product called Athena.
Board members pressed Pat and finance staff about a newly announced responsibility: the Superior Learning Academy has notified the district that it will require district-provided transportation next year. Finance staff estimated the added cost for transporting those students at "just under $200,000," covering a full‑time driver, salary and benefits, and a dedicated vehicle.
"It's gonna be a full time driver… it's just under $200,000," said district finance staff during the discussion. Pat said the initial commitment will add at least one special‑education route for roughly 27 students and that the district will meet this year's first coordination meetings with the academy and review routing details.
Pat said the district is planning to purchase two special‑education buses this year, estimating roughly $310,000 for the purchase (the transcript places the estimate around "probably about $310,000"). Pat explained there is a price differential between propane and diesel buses—about $5,000 each—and the district intends to buy at least one diesel bus to provide fuel‑type redundancy.
Board members raised operational concerns including secure parking locations, driver availability for specialized routes, and whether new routes would expand outside city limits. Pat said contingencies exist to fuel and to stand up in‑house washing, but some logistical details (exact routing, final cost allocations) remain to be determined as staff negotiate operational details and budgeting.
No formal budget vote occurred at the meeting; trustees asked staff to continue detailing cost and operational impacts for the next budget cycle.
