BANGOR, PA (February 4, 2008) Krise Bus Service, a division of Student Transportation of America (STA) of Pennsylvania, Inc. has been awarded the contract to provide van transportation services for the Bangor Area School District. The Bangor Area School District provides van transportation for more than 35 private, parochial and special needs schools in an 87 square-mile area of Northampton, Lehigh and Monroe counties.

STA’s Krise Bus has held the contract for the K-12 school district’s fleet of more than 40 full-size yellow school buses for the past five years. That contract was renewed last summer and currently runs through 2013. With the purchase of the district’s 22 vans, serving private schools and special needs students, Krise Bus now owns, operates and maintains the entire fleet of 65 school vehicles, freeing the school district of capital-intensive school bus replacement and maintenance responsibilities.

“We work hard every day to preserve our reputation for providing school districts with safe, reliable, cost-effective solutions to their transportation needs,” said Peter Pearson, chief operating officer for STA’s central region. “Ultimately, it was our proven track record with the district that led the school board to vote for the consolidation and conversion of its remaining fleet to STA’s Krise Bus.”

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania reimburses school districts for busing both public and private school students to and from school. By contracting these services out, school districts receive the greatest benefit from such reimbursements, allowing them to concentrate on education, not transportation. Privatization of school bus fleets is a growing trend in Pennsylvania and throughout the country.
Pearson said that Krise Bus gave first consideration to school van drivers already employed by the school district.

“We were pleased that virtually all Bangor drivers chose to stay on and work for Krise Bus,” Pearson said. “They continue to drive the same vans, on the same routes, providing familiar faces to the children they greet every day.”

About Student Transportation

Founded in 1997, Student Transportation is the fourth-largest provider of school bus transportation services in North America, conducting operations through local operating subsidiaries. Student Transportation has become a leading school bus transportation company by aggregating operations through the consolidation of existing providers and conversion of in-house operations and currently operates more than 5,000 school vehicles in North America. For more information, please visit www.ridesta.com.