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SPCISD to add new vehicles to fleet |
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Wednesday, September 24 2008 |
By Michelle Berry
Reporter
Last night at the regular meeting of the PSPCISD board of trustees, Superintendent Bill Wiggins was given permission to buy two suburbans for the district.
The new vehicles, Wiggins said, will be similar to the district’s current suburbans. He told the board that he recently received a bid from Ware Chevrolet in Wheeler for $31,000 each. He said that they have already budgeted for the two new vehicles, but they will cost a little bit more than the district originally allocated.
According to Wiggins, the suburbans will be delivered to Ware Chevrolet from Caldwell Chevrolet to be picked up by the district. The new vehicles, Wiggins said, will add to the district’s current fleet and be used primarily for taking staff to Region 16 workshops and staff development. They will also be used to transport small groups of students. Wiggins believes that the suburbans will provide more comfort than the small cars they use to transport staff and students.
Wiggins also presented a request before the board to purchase a new activity bus for the district. He gave the board two options to choose from, a Blue Bird bus or a coach bus. Blue Star Bus Sales sent Wiggins a bid for $142,645 for a brand new Blue Bird bus. The bid, Wiggins said, includes a special paint job with detail lettering, a dvd player and television screens, air conditioning, and reclining seats. This bus will be the same as the current buses, except for the detailed painting, Wiggins said. They can also add other features upon purchase, he said. The main problem with the Blue Bird buses, Wiggins pointed out, is that the district will not receive them until as late as February or March of 2009.
If they choose to purchase the Blue Bird buses, Wiggins said, the district will get a five year warranty because they will be new. The are very high quality buses, he pointed out.
The second option Wiggins mentioned to the board is a coach-style bus, which can hold up to 50 passengers. This bus, Wiggins said, will not be brand new, and could have as much as 500,000 miles on it upon delivery. These buses, however, are designed to go up to 1 million miles before they face major problems, Wiggins said. They are very durable and can withstand higher winds.
Another advantage of the coach-style buses, Wiggins said, is that it provides more storage space. Also, the company from which they would get the coach buses will provide training for district mechanics to teach them how to properly care for the buses and equipment. The district could receive these buses within one month, if they choose to purchase them.
The district did not receive any bids for the coach-style buses because they will have to go through a buy board. Wiggins said that the district can look through the list of buses and choose the ones that they want. The bus company will then grant or deny the bid price.
Wiggins said that the board did not have to make a decision immediately. He wanted to get the information out for them to consider. He told them that they will have a chance to look at both buses at the TASB convention in Dallas this weekend, which could help their decision. Because the Blue Bird buses are limited, the board is planning to hold a special meeting on Monday, October 6 to discuss the purchase of the bus.
Either bus will be a great asset to the district, Wiggins said.
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Last Updated ( Friday, September 26 2008 )
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