Input sought on bus air conditioning

The Terrebonne Parish School Board’s Transportation Committee is expected to review cost estimates for retrofitting the parish’s school fleet with air-conditioners at a public hearing on Sept. 17 at 5 p.m. in the central office, 201 Stadium Drive.

The board agreed to revisit the air conditioning issue in August, directing the staff to develop estimates detailing the cost associated with replacing the aging Terrebonne fleet with air-conditioned buses.

Only 18 buses have air-conditioning installed. These are used to transport handicapped students.

Nearly 180 buses travel the streets of Terrebonne Parish. In many months of the school year, temperatures surpass 90 degrees.

Concerned parents and bus drivers have publicly voiced their concerns about the lack of air-conditioning aboard the buses.

The bus drivers reported that hotter temperatures, longer routes and increased wait times at the parish’s schools make the stifling temperatures on the buses unbearable.

Last year, Christine Price, a local advocate for children’s rights, offered to begin a private fund-raising campaign to generate money to outfit buses with air-conditioning.

She suggested that initially 40 of the school system’s 60 buses be retrofitted.

The board declined her offer.

Upgrades would only apply to the parish’s 60 buses. All others are leased through Laidlaw International.

A public meeting will be held Sept. 17 at the Terrebonne Parish School Board Central Office to discuss retrofitting the parish’s 60 school buses with air conditioning. Currently, 18 parish-owned school buses have air conditioning. * Photo by SOPHIA RUFFIN