LTHS Bus Firm Wants 50% More Money: Official

LA GRANGE, IL – The bus company serving Lyons Township High School wants a more than 50 percent increase in payments, an official said this week.

At a school board meeting, Brian Stachacz, the school's director of business services, said First Student was seeking $600,000 more this school year.

But he said he told the Cincinnati-based company the school couldn't come up with that much money. He said he asked the firm to look at a plan to condense bus routes, which he said the company is doing.

He noted increases in bus drivers' wages and gas costs. First Student is the largest school bus company in the United States.

Board member Michael Thomas recalled First Student's problems last year, in which buses were often late. That was a particular issue on late start Wednesdays, a problem that officials believe has been solved.

"They could barely provide us service in the morning and afternoon," Thomas said. "A lot of kids were waiting 45 minutes to an hour just to get the bus home. So they barely delivered on a service that we were already paying a premium for last year."

Stachacz responded, "Admittedly, they would tell you they had a rough year last year. It has been an issue for them, as it has been an issue for everybody – retaining drivers."

He said it was tough to attract drivers during the pandemic because many feared they would get the coronavirus while traveling with 30 or 40 students.

"I think (First Student) did the best they could under the circumstances," he said. "They have raised their starting salaries. They have raised the salaries of existing drivers, which is why they were coming back to us to say they wanted more money for those costs."

He said the school "really has no other options."

"If we went to bid on this particular program, nobody would be able to come in and underbid them," Stachacz said. "There's no way. The startup costs would be too high. So it's kind of a partnership that we're in right now."

The school, he said, has come to rely heavily on First Student.

"They rely on us heavily as well. There's no doubt about that," Stachacz said. "It's definitely a partnership between the two of us going forward."

The board made no decisions. The issue came up during a discussion about this year's budget.

Patch has left a message for comment with First Student.