South Colonie Central School District will be holding a vote Wednesday, Oct.
14, regarding the replacement of seven buses.
District officials said that by replacing a portion of the bus fleet every
year, the district is able to free up money that would otherwise be spent on
repairs and restorations to older buses that would only last a few more
years anyway.
At a certain point, you have to be able to measure almost like your
vehicle at home you have to sort of determine if it s worth continuing to
put money into repairs, said Superintendent of Schools Jonathan Buhner.
Buhner said that with the replacement program the district has in place,
there are many benefits to the students and drivers that with the newer
buses.
The replacement plan has helped to maintain the fleet and student safety
and control repair costs, he said.
During this year s vote, district residents will be deciding on the purchase
of five 66-passenger conventional busses at $107,500 each; one 20-passenger
Type A Van at $49,500; and one 12-passenger/two-wheelchair bus at $70,000.
The total comes to $657,000, though the district would get $28,000 in
trade-ins for the buses it is retiring.
The estimated tax rate increase associated with the buses, which would be
paid off over five years, is $0.024 per $1,000 of assessed value for
residential properties in Colonie; $0.015 for residential properties in
Niskayuna; and $0.0196 for residential properties in Guilderland. For
commercial properties, the estimated tax rate increase per $1,000 of
assessed value would be $0.025 in Colonie; $0.016 in Niskayuna; and $0.020
in Guilderland. Parts of the district span Niskayuna and Guilderland.
According to Director of Transportation Peter Tunny, the buses that are
being retired are, on average, 13 years old and might not pass state
inspection standards. Thirteen years is about the lifetime of the buses
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