As summer came to an end and students prepared to once again return to USCHS, one change was apparent to everyone even before they arrived at the high school: some students this year would be riding on brand new school buses for the 2010-11 academic year.
The new buses, which are manufactured by the Thomas Built Bus Company, were purchased with money from a bond (www.pittsburglive.com). The school board approved the purchasing of 14 new buses over the summer to replace many of the older Blue Bird models that were still in use until last year.
Some students however, will not be riding in the new Thomas Built buses because the district did not replace all of the buses, only those up to bus number 124.
Among the noticeable differences between the buses of last year and this year are with the bus numbers. On the Thomas Built buses, the numbers are much higher, going all the way up to number 158. In addition, every new school bus is equipped with a radio that allows students to listen to music on the rides to and from school.
Senior Steve Kleinhans likes the new buses and believes that they were a necessity for the district. “The new school buses have much more leg room than the old ones, and the seats in the new buses can comfortably seat two people, unlike the crammed conditions of my bus from last year,” said Kleinhans, who rides bus number 146. “It was time that we upgraded because the old [buses] had tears in a few of the seats and they were really loud from the inside. Whenever I used to listen to my iPod during the trip to school, I would have to blast the music through my earphones just so I could listen to the song.”
Tyler Zink, who is also a senior, doesn’t believe that the school board needed to purchase new school buses. “The buses we used last year were in great shape and didn’t need to be replaced with brand new ones,” Zink stated.
“Although they were old, last year’s buses got the job done and were very reliable transporting students to and from school,” said Zink. “The money that went toward purchasing the new buses could have been put toward things that really needed upgraded in the school.”