Districts Weigh Benefits of
Outsourcing Transportation

In the quest to efficiently mange school funding, many districts are finding that outsourcing their school bus services to private companies helps their bottom line.

As of press time, Pontiac Township High School District 90 in Illinois was in the process of considering bids from private transportation companies. Superintendent Harlen "Butch" Cotter estimated that the district, which previously shared bus service with the local grade school Pontiac District 429, could save between $80,000 and $100,000 with a switch to contracted service.

"Now as money becomes tighter, we take a look at what the best fiscal options are for us," he said. "It's a significant amount of money that we could save."

The expertise of a private company specializing in school bus transportation would be an additional benefit to contracting out services, he added.

"We are making a good service better," Cotter said. "We have reached a day and age with all the requirements and specifications that we have that sometimes I think it is best left to the people who work in that industry."

He expected the shift in service to be in place by next fall for the 150 student riders in District 90.

Madeira City School District in Ohio switched its transportation services over to Petermann, a private contractor in Cincinnati , in 1992 for the cost savings. At the time of the decision, the district projected that $70,000 would be saved annually two to three years into the project.

The key to successfully switching to a private company for transportation needs, he said, is learning about the contractor and ensuring it is a good match. Madeira was able to secure comparable jobs and benefits with Petermann for the bus drivers formerly employed by the district, and administrators still remain part of the hiring process by interviewing driver applicants. The 12 school buses transporting the district's students have "Madeira City Schools" printed on the side.

"The thing I like about it is you turn over transportation to professionals," Kramer said. "They can do it more efficiently and more effectively."

Betty Zimdars, director of business and information systems at Howard-Suamico School District in Wisconsin agreed, saying that the success of outsourcing is due in large part to a strong partnership with its contractor, Lamers Bus Service. Howard-Suamico has contracted out for transportation since 1962 when the district was formed due to the cost of implementing its own department, which would have required everything from buying buses to hiring drivers to safety training, insurance and the day-to-day cost of operations.

Lamers transports more than 5,000 Howard-Suamico students daily on 54 school buses.

"They take responsibility to ensure all safety rules and regulations are followed and that transportation is provided in an efficient manner," Zimdars said. "The district is always informed of issues that may impact student safety or operations."

Old Bridge Township Public Schools in New Jersey splits its transportation services with half managed in-house on 45 school buses and half outsourced to a private contractor.

The district is the fourth largest in the state, and a total of 12,500 students are transported on 300 routes - 150 done by the district and 150 by a private company.

"You don't want to put all your eggs in one basket," Capasso.

While Old Bridge Township has found that contracting out for special education school bus service is more cost effective, the district has more control of the routes, drivers and buses managed in-house.

"We can control the operation better," Capasso said. "You can provide a more personalized service when you have your own buses."

Source: School Transportation News, April 2006. All rights reserved.