Nathan Straus
Jacksonville Daily Progress
JACKSONVILLE —
Jacksonville Independent School District’s pair of old white activity buses have a new and colorful flair for the new school year.
District Transportation Department Director John Keller said both of the district’s roughly 40 foot long vehicles have been given makeovers by the Texas Department of Corrections.
“They were beginning to look like they needed refit and refurbishment, Keller said. “We had used them for 11 years.”
Keller said when the buses were painted white by an outside contractor the work cost $20,000.
The work done by the Department of Corrections, including a paint job to give the buses a color scheme more in line with school spirit, only cost $7,000, he said.
The buses, Keller said, will roll around town and beyond as transportation to various extra-curricular activities such as football, basketball and Cherokee Charmers events.
Assistant Superintendent of Finance and Operations Lindy Finley said the vehicles provide a valuable service to the schools.
“Anything we can do to extend the lives of the buses is a good thing,” she said. “We’ve got some aging buses we want to keep in service and may use the prison system to help our route buses.”
Finley said without the activity buses, route buses would need to drive extra miles to deliver children to their after school destinations.
District Superintendent Dr. Joe Wardell said he is glad to have both the buses and a way to have them refurbished at low prices.
“This just shows we’re taking care of the equipment our taxpayers have entrusted us with,” Wardell said.
Keller said he expects the vehicles to leave the school’s bus barn at least three times a week, equating to a total of well over 108 trips for each bus. The vehicles, which he valued at over $90,000, are expected to serve the school for about another decade, he added.
“We’ll use them as much as we possibly can,” Keller said. “We make 700 extra-curricular activity trips a year and these will bear the brunt of them.”
