Entire bus fleet is diesel-fueled
Truckers and farmers aren’t the only ones watching closely as the cost of diesel fuel increases. School superintendents and transportation directors are watching, too.
In Greene County Community Schools, that means reviewing bus routes for paths that require the least distance, and looking closely at fuel ratings, school superintendent Brett Abbotts said. Aside from that, the district has few options, as every one of the district’s 15 buses is diesel-fueled.
That includes a bus the board approved purchasing at the September meeting. The board discussed whether the new bus should be air-conditioned and opted against that, partly because it would be the district’s only air-conditioned bus and board members wanted to avoid issues of which team would ride that bus. Cost of the bus is not to exceed $160,000.
Greene County buses cover roughly 800 miles a day, including regular routes and activity runs, Abbotts said.
Making the increasing cost of transportation more challenging is that transportation costs come from the general fund, the same fund that covers teachers’ salaries, books, and all the costs people associate generally associate with educating children. Added costs for transportation decrease what can be spent on teaching kids.
The state subsidizes the cost of student transportation via a transportation equity payment. The payment provides funds to districts with higher costs to bring their per pupil transportation cost down to the to the state average transportation cost. For Greene County, the payment covers about 40 percent of the cost of transporting students, according to Abbotts. That payment won’t help deal with rising costs now, as it’s based on student enrollment the previous year. It does not factor in changes in fuel costs.
With the Iowa legislature not in session, there has been no discussion of additional fund for rural districts to help with transportation costs. The district purchases diesel fuel in bulk and pays fairly close to the wholesale price, which is now about $5.75 per gallon. The district’s 2,000-gallon tank needs to be refilled every 4-5 weeks, Abbotts said.
~GreeneCountyNewsOnline
