Garfield/Palouse adds buses

The Garfield and Palouse schools just acquired two shiny new school buses, costing $274,880 combined.

The two buses, which can each seat around 52 students, will join a fleet of 19 other buses, said transportation supervisor Connie Newman.

“Yeah, we’re happy to have them,” Newman said.

The seatbacks on the new buses are at an angle because the buses are specifically designed for long trips, Newman said. Each bus is also an extra two and a half feet long, providing extra leg space between seats.

“Route or a trip, every single student in the entire Palouse school is served by our buses,” she said.

Under school policy, the district buys new buses every three years, Newman said.

“What students will tend to do on night games is lay down in the seat or across the aisles,” Newman said. “It’s very important that they are in an upright position at all times-because we are in a [new sports] district league that is causing us to drive very far distances – just to regular basketball or football games.”

Under changes in their WIAA classification, the Viking sports teams will be in a SE 1B league which will involve teams in the former Blue Mountain league. Teams must travel farther now.

The roomier seating and relaxed angle of the seats should make it more comfortable for students to stay upright and follow the rules, Newman said.

The combo district services 23 regular school bus routes.