South Colonie Central School District will be holding a vote Wednesday, Oct.
14, regarding the replacement of seven buses.
District officials said that by replacing a portion of the bus fleet every
year, the district is able to free up money that would otherwise be spent on
repairs and restorations to older buses that would only last a few more
years anyway.
At a certain point, you have to be able to measure almost like your
vehicle at home you have to sort of determine if it s worth continuing to
put money into repairs, said Superintendent of Schools Jonathan Buhner.
Buhner said that with the replacement program the district has in place,
there are many benefits to the students and drivers that with the newer
buses.
The replacement plan has helped to maintain the fleet and student safety
and control repair costs, he said.
During this year s vote, district residents will be deciding on the purchase
of five 66-passenger conventional busses at $107,500 each; one 20-passenger
Type A Van at $49,500; and one 12-passenger/two-wheelchair bus at $70,000.
The total comes to $657,000, though the district would get $28,000 in
trade-ins for the buses it is retiring.
The estimated tax rate increase associated with the buses, which would be
paid off over five years, is $0.024 per $1,000 of assessed value for
residential properties in Colonie; $0.015 for residential properties in
Niskayuna; and $0.0196 for residential properties in Guilderland. For
commercial properties, the estimated tax rate increase per $1,000 of
assessed value would be $0.025 in Colonie; $0.016 in Niskayuna; and $0.020
in Guilderland. Parts of the district span Niskayuna and Guilderland.
According to Director of Transportation Peter Tunny, the buses that are
being retired are, on average, 13 years old and might not pass state
inspection standards. Thirteen years is about the lifetime of the buses
exteriors, he said.
In last year s election, Tunny said the voters approved the bus proposition
calling for five 66-passenger buses, one five-passenger bus and one van-type
bus that is typically used for smaller schools. The proposition passed with
a vote of 893-to-868.
This year s proposition features more affordable buses, Buhner said. He said
the district has made an attempt to scale down and seek buses that cost
less, but that offer the same safety standards.
This year we ve scaled down a little bit, Buhner said. We re going with a
little different type [of bus] that is a little less expensive but will
serve our purpose.
The buses voters will be deciding on this year are the traditional-style
school buses you might see with the engine in the front, whereas some of the
ones that have been voted on in years past had a flat nose with an engine in
the rear of the bus. The buses being voted on are more conventional, Buhner
said, which makes them come at a lower cost though they are as safe as the
buses with the flatter noses.
Buhner said the district is being extremely cautious with its decisions that
involve money this year.
Were trying to be very thoughtful about what we re doing, he said.
The entire bus fleet has 82 buses total, with all of the buses traveling an
average of about 15,000 miles per year, Buhner said. The average lifespan of
a bus is about 12 years or 175,000 miles.
Registered voters will be able to vote between 11 a.m. and 9 p.m. on
Wednesday, Oct. 14, at one of the district s five elementary schools, which
are Veeder, Shaker Road, Forest Park, Saddlewood and Roessleville.
For more on this story, check back at www.spotlightnews.com, or read the Wednesday, Oct. 14, print edition of the Colonie Spotlight.`