A lot off Nova Road in St. Cloud will soon be the site of what Osceola Schools officials are calling “Transportation East.” It will be a full-service hub for over 220 school buses. Another hub, called “Transportation West”, is also being built near Avenue A and Poinciana Boulevard. “This will give us major transportation hubs that will serve the community and students in the area,” said Arby Creach. The new facilities will reduce the number of school bus delays and reduce the risk of accidents as bus drivers will only have to travel to and from their nearest hub rather than going to the original hub on Simpson Road in Kissimmee. many additional kilometers which are expensive for the district. It’s just empty money. It’s empty diesel. We do not transport children, we are not reimbursed by the State. Therefore, the district is losing money doing it,” Creach said. Having three hubs also means giving bus drivers more work options, which the district is using as a hiring tactic. “We think more and more people can go out and choose to be a bus driver if they live nearby. That’s another way to get people to come work for us is to say, “Hey, we have a local hub in your area, why don’t you come work for us,” Creach said. The minimum wage also increases for school district employees to $15 an hour starting July 1. The district is looking for approximately 36 drivers and 140 attendants. Transportation East is expected to open around this time next year. Transportation West should be ready to start approximately six months later. Then the district could look for a fourth property further south, under Lake Toho.
A lot off Nova Road in St. Cloud will soon be the site of what Osceola Schools officials call “Transportation East.”
It will be a full-service hub for over 220 school buses.
Another hub, called “Transportation West”, is also being built near Avenue A and Poinciana Boulevard.
“This will give us primary transportation hubs that will serve the community and students in the area,” said Arby Creach, director of transportation for Osceola Schools.
The new facilities will reduce the number of school bus delays and reduce the risk of accidents, as bus drivers will only have to travel to and from their nearest hub rather than going all the way to the hub of origin on Simpson Road in Kissimmee.
“That’s a lot of extra dead miles that are costing the district dearly. It’s just empty money. It’s empty diesel. We do not transport children, we are not reimbursed by the State. Therefore, the district is losing money doing this,” Creach said.
Having three hubs also means giving bus drivers more work options, which the district is using as a hiring tactic.
“We think more and more people can go out and choose to be a bus driver if they live nearby. Another way to get people to come and work for us is to say, “Hey, we have a local hub in your area, why don’t you come and work for us,” Creach said.
The minimum wage also increases for school district employees to $15 an hour starting July 1.
The district is looking for approximately 36 drivers and 140 attendants.
Transportation East is expected to open around this time next year.
Transport West should be ready to start approximately six months later.
Then the district could look for a fourth property further south, below Lake Toho.