Updated
10/05/2011
Rumor or Fact? I heard that Mohonasen, Duanesburg and Schalmont have proposed to have a central bus garage combining the three districts for storage? If so what benefit will this be for us considering gas prices ? Isn't our Bus Garage nearly 10 years old?
The DCS bus storage unit needs to be replaced due to the beams being rusted out near their bases. Buses are now parked outside on days of heavy snow due to concern over whether the beams could sustain the weight. Before the district pursues possibly rebuilding the structure, we want to see if there could be any cost savings by sharing a building with any nearby districts. Due to the changes in state funding, the district is actively looking to share services wherever it financially creates savings. Our focus is on providing the best possible education for our students. If the bus garage building could be combined with any other district and have no impact on our students and save the tax payers money, we'd consider this option. However, we are only exploring all options at this point and have no information as to whether this would even be feasible and/or would save us money.
Updated
09/26/2011
Is it possible for Duanesburg to supply transportation for ski club this year?
The ski club is not a district-run program anymore. In the past when the district ran the program, transportation was provided and the cost of the program was built into the budget.
Updated
08/18/2011
Why are buses driving around in the summer? Sometimes it looks like there are no kids aboard the bus?
Updated
02/01/2011
Is the bus garage connected to the e-mail
system the school uses to inform parents of two hour delay/school
closing? There were many people wondering what happened this morning
(Monday, January 24).
We use the School News Notifier (SNN) system when schools are closed or delayed. On Monday, Jan. 24, the schools were neither closed nor delayed. The buses were plugged in the night before and therefore started the next morning without any delays. All of the buses were dispatched at regular times. Six or seven bus drivers--at different times--called back to the bus garage to report that the bus they were driving had stalled and wouldn't restart. The bus garage sent mechanics to the scene to either fix the problem or transfer students to a bus that was running. We've since learned that there was condensation in the main fuel storage tank used to fill the bus fuel tanks. The condensation interfered with the flow of fuel in the buses. A vendor came to the bus garage to re-circulate the fuel and fix the condensation problem.
Updated
01/19/2011
Rumor has it that the bus garage plows driveways for certain child pick-ups so the bus can get up driveways. Is this true?
This rumor is not true.
Updated
10/19/2010
Are there any plans to reinstate the after-school buses for the Elementary School in the next budget? There seems to be more and more opportunities for students at this level, but some students aren't able to take advantage of them if transportation is an issue.
At this time, there are no plans to add any additional costs to the budget during the state's current multi-year fiscal crisis. DCS relies on state aid for approximately half of its annual budget, and the aid is constantly being reduced. However, all areas are revisited during the annual budget process.
Updated
9/21/2010
Why are some of the buses so crowded? My kids are complaining that there is no room on the bus. I've heard that high school students were being asked to sit three in a seat, which makes makes it difficult for students to walk in the aisle to get off the bus. Is this being looked into so that all students have a seat on the bus and are not crowded?
Updated
8/10/2010
Why are school buses running when school is not in session?
The district is mandated by law to provide summer school transportation for special education students depending on their level of needs. Our school buses transport them to the school.
Updated
3/9/2010
My son came home from school on Thurs. (Feb. 25) starving!! They were let out early and no lunch was served. It took 1hour and 20 minutes for him to get home that day and he said he wasn't allowed to eat his snack on the bus. Something needs to be done in these situations. Either serve lunch to the kids, have them eat snack in class before they are let out, or let them eat on the bus. There is no reason that my son should have gone that long without eating!! What is your back up plan in these cases?
Because severe weather forced the early
dismissal of school on Feb. 25,
lunch was not served, however, the kitchen staff did provide elementary
school classes with sandwiches for students to share if they were
hungry.
In most classes, students were allowed to eat their snacks before the
dismissal. Students are not allowed to eat on the bus at any time due to
safety reasons. This becomes even more crucial when bus drivers are
dealing with hazardous weather conditions.
Updated
2/26/2010
Why was there not an emergency bus dismissal at the Elementary School on Friday (Jan. 29) when temperatures were so frigid? Children should also be dropped off in front of the door instead of having to wait for all buses to arrive, and having to walk a distance in the cold and then coming into the school in an unsafe crowd.
The decision to hold an extreme weather dismissal is made as conditions warrant—typically when temperatures are below zero or in the event of strong winds. During that time, students load or unload buses directly in front of the school’s main entrance three buses at a time rather than all at once. This is done as a courtesy to students and their families. Students' entry to and dismissal from school buildings is monitored by the principal on a daily basis. If the principal is unavailable, another member of the school staff steps in to provide an additional level of security during the building's dismissal and entry process.
Updated
2/1/2010
I live just two miles outside of the district's boundaries, but I really want to go to school there. Is there any way that I could be accepted?
Unfortunately, no. The district does not accept students who live outside of its boundaries, and also does not accept tuition students.
posted
10/5/2009
Is there some reason that a personal vehicle should be pulled into the bus garage at the end of the day when most of the employees have left?
Although there is not a policy preventing a personal vehicle from being in the bus garage, this typically does not occur. On this day, the tire on a district employee's vehicle was running flat and the individual asked for help filling it with air.
posted
10/5/2009
Is there some reason that a personal vehicle should be pulled into the bus garage at the end of the day when most of the employees have left?
Although there is not a policy preventing a personal vehicle from being in the bus garage, this typically does not occur. On this day, the tire on a district employee's vehicle was running flat and the individual asked for help filling it with air.
posted
2/24/2009
After speaking with my neighbor, I found out she will be taking a special class to test bus drivers. This class is very expensive. How come the bus garage manager is not qualified to do these tests. It seems like a waste of money to have someone in a position that does not have the proper qualifications. Also the suburbans that are used all the time for running around town have snow plows on them . Aren't they very easy to take on and off? Why waste gas by keeping them on. Those cars are always driving all over the place. such a waste of money. Just one more thing I thought we have a tobacco free policy, the people who drive those cars always have cigarettes in their mouths. Is this a good example for our students?
The certified instructor class is $469, which is
aided and reimbursed at 79 percent so the actual net cost is $99 to have
an “in-house” person trained to conduct the tests. Our head bus driver
is certified and does give tests. However, there is a large volume of
tests required each year for every single driver and additional support
is needed. For example, 120 tests were given in May 2008. It is also
more cost-effective to train an “in-house” person rather than sending
drivers out of district to meet the requirements at an even greater
cost.
All bus drivers are required to take state-mandated tests annually and
bi-annually, including the Defensive Driving Review, a written test,
30-40 minute road exam and a physical performance test.
Supervisors often use their own vehicles during the day at no cost to
the district. The suburbans with snowplows leave the schools
infrequently. However, if they will be traveling for more than 30 miles
then the plow is taken off.
For more information about school bus driver requirements,
read a letter written by school bus driver Wendy Bell.
