District reports dozens of buses needing repair; preventive maintenance plan underway

Janice Gauthier provided a status update on district fleet repairs June 22, telling the board that 43 buses were operational while 30 were out of service and that preventive maintenance and air-conditioning repairs were underway.

Gauthier said a May 17 meeting established an agreement for a fleet mechanic (Mr. Lennix) to perform preventive maintenance on 30 buses before the start of school; a first list of 15 buses was delivered on May 29 with a 15-day completion expectation before a second list would be released. At the time of reporting, 38 of 43 operational buses were slated for preventive maintenance and 30 buses required AC repairs, of which 20 AC repairs had been completed by a mobile service contractor. The minutes note that 13 of the original set of buses were serviced by a different vendor; one preventive maintenance task had been completed by the current fleet mechanic to date.

The board voted to authorize advertising for contracts (pest control, food-service equipment maintenance, welding supplies) on motions carried in the recorded roll calls. The minutes do not list projected timelines for returning all buses to service or any immediate contingency bus-routing plans for the opening of school.