Support is growing for a bus company that served the Peterborough, Ont., region for over five decades but has lost its contract in a bidding process.
Hamilton Bus Lines, based in Lakefield, has carried students to schools across the region since it was formed in 1969. However, parents and school bus drivers are upset after learning the company was outbid for services this coming fall by an out-of-town provider.
On June 27, the last day of the school year, the Student Transportation Services of Central Ontario (STSCO) announced that following a public request for proposals for student transportation on existing bus routes, more than 100 routes will now be serviced by Wheelchair Accessible Transit (WAT), based in Concord, Ont. The routes were previously served by Hamilton Bus Lines.
“The RFP (request for proposals) was an open bidding process that is based on highest score, not price or lowest bid,” STSCO CAO Roy Wierenga said in a statement to Global News. “While price was a factor in the evaluations, it made up less than half of the overall scoring.
“The results of this process have now been released and while many current operators obtained contracts, Hamilton Bus Lines was not successful as part of the procurement and bidding process. We recognize and appreciate the significant impact this may have on drivers with Hamilton Bus Lines. As the successful operators begin to hire drivers for local routes, we encourage local drivers to apply for these positions.”
Hamilton Bus Lines school bus drivers received the news as they dropped off students on June 27 to wrap up the school year.
“Normally the last day of school is very exciting and everyone’s looking forward to summer,” driver Julie Chatten said. “And it was devastating to see all those runs were lost.”
Hamilton Bus Lines is a division of Attridge Transportation Inc. based in Burlington, Ont. Vice-president James Attridge calls the loss of the routes “gut-wrenching.”
“This competitive procurement, it can be ugly,” he said. “It’s wiped out a large number of family businesses over the years in Ontario.”
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Parents are also upset, arguing Hamilton Bus Lines has served generations and families are familiar with the local drivers. An online petition, launched by Keri Toms, has garnered more than 2,570 signatures as of Wednesday morning. It urges STSCO to reverse its decision and to ask both the public and Catholic school boards to support them.
“They are one of the first faces our children see each and every day,” Toms said. “These drivers play a quiet but bright part of our children’s lives. I don’t know what we would do without them. Our goal is to have as many people made aware of this terrible situation and for them to act now by signing this petition.”
Wendy Hargreaves, a Hamilton Bus Lines employee for 18 years, says she has loved her job as a school bus driver. She says the more than 100 employees have been “devastated and blindsided” by what she calls “outsourcing” of the jobs.
“This ‘route bidding’ process has not only wiped out our jobs in the blink of an eye, but has drastically affected the local economy,” she said. “Outsourcing to an unknown, beyond Toronto. Myself and my co-workers have given unprecedented, professional yet personal service to children and their families for years.
“Thousands of families across this city, county and beyond, have relied on local, knowledgeable and reliable drivers to serve them, entrusting us with their most precious offering.”
On Wednesday morning, Hamilton Bus Lines drivers held a small rally at the Peterborough Memorial Centre parking lot to raise awareness of STSCO’s decision.
“Everybody’s shocked. We can’t understand how this will happen or why it would be allowed to happen,” Chatten said. “There’s just so much uncertainty for the fall.”
Wierenga says STSCO is committed to hiring local bus drivers to continue to serve the region and will work with all bus companies to prepare for the September startup.
“We want to reassure families that your children’s bus routes will continue to be operated by drivers that have been hired locally and are part of our communities,” he stated. “Also, we would like to note that all new contracts require all operators to set up local facilities to service their buses.”
Attridge suggests the changeover will create some initial challenges for drivers and parents alike.
“There’s certainly going to be quite the shakeup, certainly in the Peterborough region,” he said. “I would be concerned that there’s going to be significant delays and driver shortages because of this.”
Chatten says with less than two months before the new school year, some drivers are left with a tough career decision.
“Each driver is just sort of assessing their needs and whether they continue on with one of the other companies or decide to retire,” she said.
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