By Mike Berger
After two rocky starts in a row plagued by delays, seat shortages and inconsistent communication, Canton School Superintendent Derek Folan is determined to give the bus transportation program a much smoother start to the school year for all grade levels and routes by 2024-25.
“This year we have set ourselves the goal of making bus travel even more pleasant and are using the experiences of the last two years to improve,” said Folan. “We know that the last two years were a difficult start. We hope that this year will be better.”
During the first weeks of the last school year, and especially the school year before, the problems with the new bus operator, First Student Inc., became so severe that the school administration considered drastic measures – including at times the possible early termination of the contract – while at the same time publicly reprimanding First Student for what they considered to be an “unacceptable” standard of service.
But after hiring a transportation consultant last year and taking concrete steps to address some of the bigger problems, school officials are confident they can hit the ground running this year.
Folan said school leaders are applying the problem-solving strategies that helped “get things back on track” in September and October during the summer months to ensure everyone is ready on Aug. 28.
“We have taken the feedback to heart,” he said. “We owe it to our school community to provide better service, and we have told First Student that we need a higher level of performance.”
Additional measures include the introduction of a new SMS notification system, conducting test drives on bus routes in the summer and closing late registrations until after October 1.
Brian Lynch, Canton Public Schools’ new assistant superintendent for finance and operations, has facilitated several face-to-face meetings with First Student representatives, CPS transportation coordinator Brett McCloud and Folan.
During those discussions, Folan said, the group first addressed communication gaps, particularly delays. “We established a protocol and expectation for communication with school officials so we can communicate with families more quickly,” he said. “The First Student app and our new texting system will also be utilized.”
Folan recommends that all parents of bus riders install the app on their phones so they can track their child’s bus and be notified if there are delays. Instructions have been posted on the CPS transportation page at cantonma.org.
The SMS system, fully integrated with the district’s new student information system (PowerSchool), is now active and allows school administration to send brief messages and reminders to families.
“It’s a great way for bus service to quickly contact families if there is a problem with the bus,” Folan said.
Passenger numbers and registration
Despite the challenges facing bus service in recent years, Canton’s overall ridership has remained stable, with nearly identical numbers between this year and last year (2,160 versus 2,169). The district’s total fleet will include 20 buses – 19 owned by First Student and one owned by CPS.
Folan hopes that limiting rolling registration well into the summer will alleviate some of the problems. “We started signing up for bus transportation early and sent out several additional reminders before we set the cutoff date and final call-off in July,” he said. “We needed to ensure a fixed number of riders to accurately plan routes, stops and bus assignments. In the past, we had rolling registrations and we just can’t do that anymore.”
Folan said that at this time, anyone who has not signed up for bus transportation will be placed on a waiting list until Oct. 1. Those who are registered for bus transportation will receive a temporary electronic pass before school starts, and Folan said school staff will immediately and closely check bus passes. If a student does not have a bus pass, they will not be able to ride the bus, he said.
If parents have not received their child’s bus information and temporary pass by tomorrow, August 23, they should notify the CPS Transportation Office. Permanent bus passes, as well as plastic tags, will be given to students at school by the end of September.
Folan said the design of bus routes is critical. “We work with First Student to design the routes and have them reviewed by Canton residents and staff,” he said. “This is a new element that helped us in September and October of last year. We are making our bus routes more efficient by creating stops in neighborhoods where it is safe to do so. We monitor the duration of each trip.”
Folan added that an administrative assistant in the business office works closely with McCloud to ensure all transportation-related emails and calls are answered in a timely manner. That extra support has paid off over the past year, he said.
Lynch also performs quality control checks on the GPS systems and cameras on the buses to ensure they are working properly.
Folan said school leadership will continue to meet monthly with First Student representatives to review performance and service delivery.
“Bus service is always difficult at the beginning of the year – even in a good year,” he said. “So we appreciate everyone’s patience while we sort things out and solve problems. I’m proud that our team has been very proactive and we’ve taken so many steps to improve.”
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