POLL: What's Your Take on the Transportation Situation?

The School Committee last night heard a report from Deputy Superintendent for Finance and Operations John Flaherty, in which he recommended the committee consider .

Flaherty said the initial savings to the district would be in the ballpark of $375,000. Many residents, however, feel there are not enough details available about the process through which the district came up with their recommendation, or about the potential agreement that would be struck between the district and First Student.

What would happen to the employees of the current Transportation Department? How would their income and benefits be affected if they were hired by First Student? Who will be driving the kids, and how well do they know the area? What kind of condition can the district expect the buses to be in at the conclusion of a three-year contract under which outside mechanics would be tending to them, and how might that factor change the projected cost savings? How thorough was the search for an alternate location for the Transportation Department before attention was turned toward outsourcing?

These questions and more may be answered at next week's public forum, but for now, there is a lot of conversation in town about the future of the Transportation Department. What's your take on the situation? Vote in our poll, or leave your thoughts in the comment section.