Above: Efforts to improve Northborough – Southborough Public Schools students’ school bus experience for the start of the next school year ran into another hurdle this month. (photo by Beth Melo)
As most parents of kids in NSBORO Schools are aware, the administration has been dealing with “transportation” issues like late/cancelled buses due to too frequent incidents of absent drivers or equipment breakdowns over the past couple years.
The administration and school committees were hoping to reduce those issues through a new contract for next year. Apparently, they learned through the only two bids received on the contract, improvements as proposed would have come at a big cost.
The Community Advocate covered Monday’s meeting of the combined Northborough, Southborough, and Regional school committees that was dedicated to discussing the bids.
According to the story, even the bid from the current provider, NRT, would have been 45% more than the current contract. That’s despite the administration having previously negotiated with NRT that if they extended the current contract it would be without a price increase over the 5% annual increase in the contract.
Asst Superintendent of Finance Rebecca Pellegrino cited the main reason for the cost spikes under the new contract put out to bid were the inclusion of two requirements meant to reduce recurring issues. Those were dedicating “four spare drivers specifically to our district” and “language that the buses would be no more than five years old and have no more than 60,000 original miles at the beginning of each contract year.”
The committees determined that rather than accepting either bid, the schools should seek bids for a revised contract. That means the cost for next year’s transportation contract is still unknown.
In addition to seeking the contract for next year, the administration is also making a longer term effort. The CA writes:
The district is also interested in engaging a transportation consultant to assess transportation in fiscal 2029. Martineau said the consultant would analyze what it would take and cost to bring transportation in house at the end of the three-year contract.
For more information on next year’s contract situation, read the CA’s detailed article here.
As I posted yesterday, according to Select Board Chair Kathy Cook, due to the uncertainty of next year’s transportation costs, the schools won’t be included in the upcoming FY26 Budget Summit held by the Select Board and Advisory Committee on Saturday, January 25th.
That budget talk will be pushed to February. (As of now, it looks like the summit on the 25th will still continue with Police, Fire, and Public Works departments.)
