Trustees debate whether to rebid routes or study buying buses as transportation costs rise

Transportation emerged as a focused topic during the March 5 workshop, with trustees and residents pressing the administration for timelines, cost estimates and options after some contractors declined to extend existing routes.

Assistant Superintendent Brian Phelps said the district currently budgets roughly $8.7 million for transportation and estimated that 2024–25 costs could top $9 million. He said the district had reached out to all contracted carriers; two companies agreed to extend certain routes, but many routes will be rebid because contractors declined blanket CPI extensions. Phelps noted that other districts that rebid routes have seen jumps as large as 30 percent.

Several trustees asked whether the district should explore buying buses and operating routes directly, or hire a consultant to analyze consolidation or in‑house operation. Board members argued buying a small fleet might be worthwhile if buses could serve multiple purposes (regular routes, athletics, field trips) and thereby reduce contract costs.

Phelps said there is no current plan to purchase buses, citing practical constraints: the district does not have a bus yard, fueling infrastructure or the staffing to maintain and operate its own fleet. He offered to research options, but cautioned that assigning staff to that work would divert resources from existing priorities such as grant writing and other district tasks.

Trustees requested that the administration return with cost comparisons and a clearer timeline for routes that must be rebid; Phelps committed to reporting back after April 1 about which routes will be rebid and to provide any extension‑rate information when available.

The conversation closed without a decision to buy buses or hire outside consultants; trustees signaled interest in a targeted study but did not direct staff to proceed to procurement during the March 5 session.