SPOKANE, Wash. — Spokane Public Schools wants to have its own fleet of buses by 2028.
The district says it will save money buying its own buses instead of contracting with another company.
Right now, SPS contracts with the company Zum to provide bus services. It has contracted the use of buses for the last 50 years.
New state laws require the district to give contracted bus drivers similar benefits to other school district employees, driving up costs for the district.
Over the next few years, the district says it needs to buy 125 school buses for its own fleet. It is also looking for land to build a new transportation hub to store all of these buses.
“As we move in house, there’s some things that we may do different,” said Adam Swinyard, the superintendent of Spokane Public Schools. “Those are the things that we’re modeling out now so we have the best plan and the best approach moving forward that’s going to create the highest level of cost efficiency to the school district.”
Swinyard says SPS will use state funding to buy land for the district’s transportation hub.
The district’s Board of Directors will discuss authorizing over $32 million to buy new school buses at Wednesday’s meeting.
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