School District Takes Transportation Reins

Committee Members Vote 8-1 to Allow Superintendent's Office to
Run Busses; Costs Projected to Stay Under Budget

By RACHEL KOVAC

School committee members voted this week to allow the Vineyard
school district to continue managing its own transportation system for
the remainder of the year, but not without some hesitation.

The vote to allow the superintendent's office to continue
managing the busses came Tuesday night in an emergency meeting of the
Martha's Vineyard Regional High School district committee and the
up-Island regional school committee. The decision still leaves
unanswered questions for bus drivers, school leaders and taxpayers.

Days before school began early last month, officials scrambled to
put together a temporary plan to carry Vineyard children to school.

The plan was needed after MV Coachlines abruptly pulled out of its
transportation contract with the Island school district amid a heated
labor dispute with bus drivers. Company president Edward W. Pigman said
he could not find enough drivers willing to work for him to fulfill his
contract.

With freshmen needing transportation for orientation the next day
and school officially beginning for all students two days after that,
the school district had two options - award the bus contract to
the second bidder, the tour bus company Island Transport, or take on the
responsibility themselves.

Following the recommendation of a transportation subcommittee, the
two school committees voted 10-1 to allow Vineyard schools
superintendent Dr. James H. Weiss to run the busses for six weeks.

Under the initial plan, the transportation managers were Mr. Weiss,
Amy Tierney, assistant to the superintendent for business affairs, and
James Maseda, a longtime bus driver and coordinator for athletic games
and field trips.

This week the two school committees voted 8-1 to allow Mr. Weiss to
put a management plan in place that includes hiring a manager,
developing policies and procedures, evaluating bus routes and creating a
salary scale for bus drivers.

"We have contracted with a consultant to work at routes,
drivers salaries and policies and procedures," Mr. Weiss said
yesterday. "We will as quickly as possible come up with a
reasonable salary schedule. We believe it will be a fair and competitive
salary."

At Tuesday's meeting some committee members expressed concern
about costs and whether the school should really be involved in the
transportation business.

"I don't understand why we are getting into the
transportation business," said Jeffrey (Skipper) Manter, a member
of the up-Island school committee and the lone dissenting vote.
"All of a sudden it became a front burner decision to take on the
transportation business ourselves. There was no real serious analysis of
what that might encumber."

Mr. Manter also questioned the cost of running the busses. Robert
Tankard, chairman of the transportation subcommittee, said there is
plenty of money in the budget to run the busses this year.

Ms. Tierney has put together a worksheet with draft estimates of
transportation expenses. Her estimates project the actual cost for this
year at about $200,000 less than the $1.49 million budgeted, but a good
chunk of the estimate is still soft or unknown, including salaries for
drivers and a transportation manager. Rising fuel costs and maintenance
on the busses, which is done by the Vineyard Transit
Authority (VTA), may also affect the
transportation budget.

"Even with these estimated costs we are not going to have to
go back to the towns to ask for more money," Mr. Weiss said.

Mr. Tankard agreed, saying that money was one of the key factors in
the transportation subcommittee's decision.

"Down the road I think this is better for the school
system," he said.

Committee members did not say whether they would decide to continue
to run the busses next year.

School transportation has been unsettled on the Vineyard for the
last several years. Island Transport had held the bussing contract for
more than 20 years prior to last fall. But heading into the final year
of its five-year contract, a public dispute over autonomy and finances
caused the school district to sever its ties with the Oak Bluffs
company.

Then weeks before the start of school last year, former schools
superintendent Kriner Cash brokered a deal to hire the VTA to maintain the busses and MV Coachlines to manage and
operate them.

MV Coachlines was awarded a second, one-year contract this summer.
But in August bus drivers met with school committee members to say they
would not work for the company because of unpaid bonuses, inhospitable
working conditions, reduced routes and distrust of Mr. Pigman.

"We believe we can do it for a year and explore the best way
to do transportation in a fair and equitable way for the kids, drivers
and the community," Mr. Weiss said this week.

Mr. Manter said if the school committee decides the
superintendent's office should not be involved with
transportation, the decision would have to be made soon and the contract
put out to bid around December. He questioned whether an informed
decision could be made based on the limited time.

"I wouldn't have any problem if we had done a full
study," he said. "But to do this under great pressure
doesn't seem in the best interest. I have a difficult time
swallowing this and I don't know if we're really saving
money. In the long term it usually doesn't work out."

Mr. Weiss said even if the current plan doesn't work out,
running the busses for the year gives school leaders an edge when making
decisions about transportation.

"At least we will be able to make decisions on transportation
with a better knowledge base," he said.