Prior Lake-Savage Area School Board approve purchase of new bus

Prior Lake American

The Prior Lake-Savage Area School Board on Monday approved the purchase of a new, $60,000 bus.

The district currently has 45 buses but received complaints from parents at the beginning of the school year regarding overcrowding, Operations and Transportation Director Jim Dellwo said last month.

“Our office has had a lot of calls,” Dellwo said.

Board member Melissa Enger on Monday said the additional bus was “very important.” Other board members agreed.

Routes for the buses are set in late August each year based on student enrollment and where students live, Dellwo said. As a result, the district receives complaints about overcrowding each year while the routes are worked out.

In 2018, the highest load count was 68, which Dellwo said was below capacity of the buses but did mean students were sometimes sitting three to a seat.

“We are not overloaded on any single bus,” he said.

A bus was pulled over by Minnesota State Patrol after a parent called and said a bus was overcrowded, but the bus had 60 kids, Dellwo said.

Nonetheless, Dellwo said the additional bus will help lower the numbers of students on each bus.

“We do need another school bus to address capacity in our fleets,” Dellwo said during the board meeting Monday.