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Bus Firm to Lose Contract With Schools in Newhall

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Times Staff Writer

The Newhall School District has decided not to renew its $300,000 annual contract with Laidlaw Transit when it expires in June, saying the company has provided poor bus service.

Laidlaw’s poor record, as well as a desire to cut costs, has motivated the district to seek bids from other contractors, Pat Willett, a school district trustee, said Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Laidlaw buses serving the William S. Hart Union High School District continue to have scheduling problems, a school district official said.

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“They really haven’t shown any improvement,” said Jim Bown, director of support services in the Hart district.

Buses Often Late

Officials of the Hart and Newhall districts, both in the Santa Clarita Valley, have complained for months that a chronic shortage of drivers results in sloppy bus service. Buses are habitually late and many drivers are unfamiliar with routes, district officials said.

Laidlaw, the largest school bus transportation company in the nation, has pledged repeatedly to improve service. The company is paid about $1 million a year to transport 3,600 Hart and Newhall students.

Newhall Supt. J. Michael McGrath notified Laidlaw on Jan. 23 that the district plans to seek transportation bids for the new fiscal year, which begins July 1. McGrath did not cite poor service in his letter, but the message was clear, he said Wednesday. The letter’s tone, he said, “was rather cold.”

Laidlaw officials could not be reached for comment.

Renewed Contract Unlikely

Laidlaw is free to bid on Newhall’s contract once again, but the district has little confidence in the company, McGrath said. “They almost seem incapable of dealing with it,” he said of the tardy buses. “The real issue is that they have a constant shortage of drivers.”

The company has tried to fill its driving ranks in the valley by housing substitute Laidlaw drivers in area motels. The company also has tried to recruit valley residents to drive its buses. The firm has run classified advertisements in community newspapers and stationed recruiters outside supermarkets.

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But Willett said bad publicity probably has hampered Laidlaw’s efforts. Bown said Laidlaw is short of drivers in some of the company’s other Southern California operations and is hard-pressed to find substitutes to drive in the Santa Clarita Valley.

“I don’t think they’ve got anyone to bring up here,” Bown said.

Laidlaw’s performance in the valley improved in November and December after Hart officials threatened to sever their contract unless buses started running on time. But bus service nose-dived when students returned from their winter break last month, Bown said.

An independent auditor is reviewing transportation services in the Hart and Newhall districts. The audit is expected to be completed by the end of the month.

Complaints about Laidlaw’s service in the valley mirror criticisms leveled against the company in the Las Virgenes Unified School District during the 1987-88 school year. Laidlaw buses were late and the firm had to rely on a staff of substitute drivers, said Fred Wendt, the Las Virgenes district’s supervisor of maintenance operations and transportation.

The Las Virgenes district decided not to renew its contract with Laidlaw partly because of poor service, Wendt said. The district also sought a less costly transportation firm, he said. Laidlaw bid to regain the contract but lost to another firm, he said.

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