Deal reached to get Renfrew County school buses back on the road

UPDATE | Most buses are expected to return to service Oct. 28, with some expected delays.

Renfrew County school bus companies and the group representing its English school boards say they have an agreement in principle to get school buses running again for the first time this school year.

The Renfrew County Joint Transportation Consortium and the bus group released a joint statement late Monday afternoon about the deal.

They said the bus companies will put forth a proposal this workweek for when buses can return to the sprawling eastern Ontario county and that date will be confirmed early next week.

Alan Jackson, spokesperson for the bus companies, said it could take two to three weeks for drivers to organize and practise routes. The consortium declined an interview with CBC. 

The two parties had been at a standoff over driver pay, leaving about 10,000 English public and Catholic students and their families to change their routines and find other transportation since the start of the school year on Sept. 4.

I don't have a job because of this mess.- Jennifer Westley, Petawawa parent

Jackson said he couldn't yet disclose the final offer they accepted. 

"It's definitely not where we want it to be, but at this point in time we understand the school board's funding woes and, you know, money possibly to be taken out of the classroom," he said.

"We don't want that anymore than anybody else does."

The deal, according to the statement, will at least run until the end of the 2028-2029 school year.

"We wanted the long-term contract," Jackson said.  "We've driven these students for decades … so we just want to continue that legacy."

Ottawa Morning7:00Renfrew County bus operators and transportation consortium reach tentative deal

Since the start of the school year, thousands of students in the region didn’t have a bus to get to school. We’ll get the latest on the deal from the school bus operators and get reaction from a family that has been forced to make tough decisions as a result of the month-long dispute.

Subsidies from school board

For some parents, the impacts of the cancellations are lasting. 

Jennifer Westley from Petawawa said she has to balance getting one kid to school there, another to Pembroke and getting to her job in Deep River. It's about a 50-kilometre drive from Pembroke to Deep River.

After a month of her management letting her modify her work schedule to drive her children, she said they told her to "figure it out by Friday or I guess find a new job."

"Now I don't have a job because of this mess," Westley said. 

Ottawa Morning5:50Petawawa woman loses job after month-long bus dispute

Jennifer Westley of Petawawa, Ont., has been ferrying two children to two different schools before and after the bell. After pressure from her Deep River employer to find other arrangements, Westley quit her job.

Kevin McCrea, general manager of McCrea's ClimateCare in the town of Renfrew, said the bus cancellations have caused production to be "way down."

He said they've allowed some employees to reduce their hours to about six hours a day to drive their kids to school. 

"It's costing us in our business thousands [of dollars] and the school board is saving millions but not providing the services," he said. 

The Renfrew County District School Board announced on Friday it would soon be providing subsidies to families affected by the bus disruptions. 

The subsidies will be based on distance and range from $25 to $125 a week. 

The board confirmed Monday they will still be offered and said its goal is to compensate parents for the entire duration of the cancellations. 

"I'm happy there's some consideration, of course, but it doesn't nearly cover even the fuel costs, you know, never mind the time," McCrea added.