PHOTO: Courtesy of WLUK
ALGOMA, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — The record high cost of diesel fuel continues to be a burden on industry in Wisconsin.
It’s now trickled down to school districts.
Some districts in Northeast Wisconsin bus students themselves and this means expensive fuel is hurting their bottom line.
One example is the Algoma school district, which is doing what it can to keep buses on the road. This school year, the district is budgeting $11,000 more for fuel.
The Algoma School District has six buses and operates them on its own.
Busing students to and from school is adding up to more than the district had hoped for.
In just the past couple weeks, it increased its transportation fuel budget from $37,000 to $48,000, or about 30%.
“Seeing where costs are at right now, we felt it was necessary to just prepare for the future. It’s unknown how long the fuel costs will be at this rate, but we want to make sure that we’re set up for what’s to come,” Algoma School District Superintendent Jesse Brinkmann said.
Brinkmann said because of the high price of fuel, the district had to cut down on drivers.
According to AAA, diesel hit a record high Tuesday in Wisconsin at an average of $6.61 a gallon.
Algoma also had to reduce its number of bus routes from four to three.
“Our city route has been absorbed into our rural routes. So all three of our rural routes now have stops within the city that they pick up before and after school,” Brinkmann said.
The Algoma School Board will be approving a new budget in October.
Brinkmann said shoveling more money into transportation could mean fewer opportunities for students.
That includes athletics, after-school activities, and possibly reducing staff.
For now, the district is trying to cut as many corners as possible.
“We’ve also looked at scheduling for our students of our extracurricular activities and making sure that, can we combine maybe a varsity and the JV team onto one bus rather than having to run two separate buses?” Brinkmann said.
While Algoma schools runs its own buses, other districts like Green Bay and Appleton outsource busing to companies like Lamers Bus Lines.
Both districts say prices are locked in and there are no additional cost impacts to them at this time.
While diesel is rising in cost, regular unleaded continues to fluctuate too with the statewide average at $4.42 a gallon.
GasBuddy.com can help provide you a look at prices in your area.
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