The Jamesville-DeWitt Central School District is proposing to purchase five new school buses for what it typically pays to buy four.
The buses the district is proposing to buy include three new 2022 65-passenger gasoline Bluebird buses for $111,487 each, one new 2020 65-passenger gasoline Bluebird bus for $84,294 and one new 2018 65-passenger gasoline Bluebird bus for $81,194 for a total of $499,952.
The 2018 and 2020 buses have not been driven and have no miles.
“These are new buses that other districts had planned to purchase but canceled their orders,” School Business Administrator Timothy Decker said. “Both of these buses fit our specifications and are less expensive than purchasing current-year models.”
On May 18, residents will vote on whether to authorize the proposed purchase of the five new buses that would replace five 2009 65-passenger Bluebird buses with miles on each totaling between 111,959 and 144,739.
If voters approve the proposed purchase, the state would reimburse the district over a five-year period for about 70% of the cost of the new vehicles. The trade-in values of the 2009 buses would offset a portion of the purchase of the new buses, and local property taxes would pay the remainder.
All school buses must pass a rigorous state inspection that typically occurs twice annually. The district normally replaces its buses when it is no longer cost effective to make the repairs necessary to meet the state’s safety standards. In 2019, the most recent year the state inspected J-D’s buses, the district had a 100% passing rate.
About 3,000 students are eligible for district transportation to public and private schools, and the district transports students to more than 30 school locations. In 2019, the district’s buses traveled more than 510,000 miles.