Families in Renfrew County could be left scrambling to find transportation for their children when the school year starts.
The Renfrew County Joint Transportation Consortium (RCJTC) sent a letter to families on Monday saying school bus companies have rejected the most recent contract extension offers.
“Unlike years before, the school bus service companies are refusing to guarantee that there will be student transportation services in September unless contract extensions are reached,” Justin Jeffrey, the general manager at the RCJTC, said in the letter.
The RCJTC coordinates 200 bus routes for students across the Renfrew County District School Board (RCDSB) and the Renfrew County Catholic District School Board (RCCDSB), providing service to 10,000 students each day.
The consortium added that it has “enormous respect and appreciation for the school bus drivers and the important role they play in our students’ education.”
It said its funding comes from the Ministry of Education, through the school boards, and the funding provides a set amount specifically for student transportation. This means they are “limited” in what can be offered for rate increases to school bus service companies, it said.
“Although our offers have included unprecedented increases to rates, meeting the current demands is simply not possible without cuts to programs and services that directly impact classroom education,” Jeffrey said.
Ministry asked to do more
In a statement, the Renfrew County School Bus Operators, a group of private school bus providers, said RCJTC “seems to be sitting on reserves while putting the brakes on funds that the operators require just to keep up with inflation, drivers’ pay and the continuation of service.”
Bus operators say they are facing cost increases of 30 to 70 per cent for inputs needed to run their transportation services, including insurance, new buses, bus parts and driver wages. The operators added that negotiations have been going on for a year and RCJTC’s latest offer of a 12 per cent increase falls short.
“Bus operators in neighbouring jurisdictions are receiving rates up to 20 per cent higher than in Renfrew County, but costs to operate buses are the same,” said Mark Allan, a spokesperson for the local bus operators.
“Our buses are certified ready to go, our certified drivers, who are trained, dedicated professionals, are ready to go. But without a contract, buses won’t run.”
The statement also calls for the minister of education to step in.
“Minister [Todd] Smith must fix the broken funding protocols that have forced RCJTC to issue an ultimatum to operators – to accept a contract with inadequate funding or lose their bus routes and contracts. This isn’t fair negotiating,” said Allan.
School board funding increased
In an email to CBC, the Ministry of Education said funding to school boards has increased.
“In Renfrew County that means an increase of $2.2 million for the upcoming 2024/25 school year, bringing the total student transportation budget to $18.3 million for both the public and Catholic school boards in Renfrew County,” said Edyta McKay, a spokesperson for the minister of education.
“While school boards are entirely responsible for the delivery of student transportation, we hope a contract will be negotiated soon so parents have certainty and students are able to get to their first day of school,” she added.
In a joint statement, RCDSB and RCCDSB said they support the efforts of the RCJTC, which is exploring all options to ensure buses transport students on Sept. 4. Those efforts include looking at other companies to service bus routes.