School Bus Ontario (SBO) is frustrated with a new funding formula which they believe will hurt bus drivers in all regions of the province hard.
The Ontario government has cut back funding for school bus operators in many regions across the province, and according to School Bus Ontario, that is leading to urgent concerns about the ability to keep buses on the road amidst increasing costs.
SBO officials say a new funding formula that contained punishing fuel cuts and other changes has negatively affected each region. As a result, School Bus Ontario officials feel there isn’t enough money flowing to the operators to pay for basics like adequate driver compensation, driver retention bonuses, and new buses.
On top of that, The Ministry of Education imposed a reduction of between .56 to .58 cents per litre of fuel, which has left operators in certain regions worried about filling their tanks to cover the millions of kilometres a day travelled by their professional drivers.
SBO is a non-profit association providing advocacy, education and legislative consultation services to the owners of school bus fleets, school boards/transportation consortia and supplier/manufacturer/distributor companies across Ontario for over 60 years.
Nancy Daigneault, executive director with SBO, says all regions will be hit.
"Each area is going to be impacted differently — the fuel funding cut by the province has created an untenable situation and each region/operation will need to evaluate how to deal with such a massive cut in funding," said Daigneault in an email.
"Some local operators may cut back in office staff to deal with cuts or dispatch staff —- we know some operators are considering legal action," said Daigneault.
"Eventually slowdowns and continued cancellations and delays will persist. Some operators haven't even been paid fuel for last year (millions of dollars) and don't know how they will get paid this coming year. This is due to funding formula changes imposed by the province," he added.
Daigneault believes the gas reduction will really hurt.
“Some bus operators are still owed millions for the 2023/24 school year and are heading into this new year without knowing how they will be paid for fuel,”she said.
"Northern areas have a harder time because of the distance travelled — many, many more kilometres than urban routes and a fuel funding cut will hit harder."
"The province claims these issues are local in nature but the problem was created by the provincial funding formula which local boards/consortia must follow — a cut in fuel or any other area impacts local contracts," said Daigneault.
"This is not just a local issue because the only way it can be fixed is with the province changing the funding formula. Our hands are tied, the boards and consortia hands are tied. Only the province can fix this."
Daigneault believes the situation is frustrating with the first day of school on the horizon.
"School will be starting and once again bus operators are facing funding shortfalls that not only create a September of discontent, but raise the possibility of even more school bus cancellations and disruptions in some regions," warned Daigneault.
"Operators require proper funding so they can focus on job-one: getting our kids to school and home safely,” she said.
