Farmington School Buses Run Smoothly During First Week, Officials Say

With thousands of children to pick up and drop off, Farmington Public Schools transportation department faces a big challenge at the start of every school year. 

But this year seemed to go better than most, transportation supervisor Bill Tousley told school board members Tuesday. Tousley said about two-thirds of the district's students are eligible for transportation this year, and the only first week "glitch" involved some students who didn't get on the right bus for an after-school program.

"We never, never lost a kid," Tousley said. "We might not have them exactly on the right bus at the right time, but they're with us, they're safe and we'll get them where they need to go."

This year, he said, bus information went out earlier, which seemed to help cut down on the number of calls to the transportation department. Tousley received 80 requests for changes in a bus stops; all but 14 were accommodated. 

Tousley said scheduling buses is a "balancing act" that starts with determining how many students need transportation, then figuring out how to schedule them all. "I'm really proud of my people," he said. "(They are) some of the unsung heroes in the district."

"They were just phenomenal this year," Supt. Sue Zurvalec said, expressing her thanks to the drivers. "The students all arrived on time."