Granby Bus Drivers Concerned Over Possible New Contract

The lowest proposal that the Granby Board of Education is considering for a new bus contract has drawn the concern of current school bus drivers in town.

School board member Matt Wutka said at the board’s regular meeting that the district received four bids on a possible five-year bus contract, with three companies - current provider M&J Bus, Autumn Transportation and Specialty Transportation - all submitting proposals within the same price range.

The fourth company, First Student School Bus Transportation, submitted a bid that would cost the district about $100,000 less per year - or $500,000 over the life of the agreement - on regular bus runs than the other companies.

The district, according to Wutka, will also save about $15,000 per year for contracted buses for special events and field trips.

The current bus contract that the school district has with M&J is set to expire in June. The school board did not take any action on the proposed new agreement, though it is expected to vote on the item at its next meeting on April 4.

Wutka said that First Student's offer was not too good to be true and that it was a reputable company that is also the service provider for Suffield.

But while the First Student proposal sounds like a great deal for the town, several bus drivers who were in attendance at Wednesday’s meeting expressed their reservations.

Karen Bledsoe, a Granby resident and bus driver, said that she was concerned about her employment status as a result of the possible switch in bus transportation providers.

“We know the kids, we know the roads,” Bledsoe said. “Most of us drivers have a tenure with M&J. We don’t want to lose that tenure.”

Fellow bus driver and Granby resident Debbie Crosset called First Student’s business practices into question, stating that the company has a huge worldwide market share.

“They control over 40 percent of the communities,” Crosset said. “I think that’s an awful lot of control and I think that, yes they come in and under-bid other companies because they have all this backing and money. … But if they do that in all the towns, then in five years you go to look at the competition there won’t be anyone else.”

Crosset also said that First Student takes control of the bus routes.

“I don’t know how much the town will have control with the buses,” Crosset said. “I wonder what that is going to do to a town that likes to take care of itself and have a say about how things are going.”

After the meeting, however, school district Business Manager Harry Traver said that bus drivers tend be hired by new providers and that no one’s position was expected to be in jeopardy.

Traver said that an informational meeting would also be set up with the contractor and the bus drivers to clarify any issues, if the school board changed providers.