Providence School Bus Co. Contract Has Expired, City Could Fire First Student
Friday, September 28, 2018
The contract between the City of Providence and First Student has expired and the extension has received two of three approvals, and is now pending before the Providence City Council.
“First Student's original contract was for 3 years and contained a 2-year extension provision. It is this extension that has been approved by the School Board and awaits City Council ratification,” said Frank McMahon, First Student spokesman.
The extension was approved by the Providence School Board and by the City's Board of Contract and Supply.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTProvidence Mayor Jorge Elorza confirms that the city’s relationship with the First Student is tenuous.
“There is an extension of the prior contract currently pending in the City Council which has been held at the Administration's request,” said Emily Crowell, Director of Communications for Elorza.
She added that, “The Administration is currently considering any and all options. Replacing the company would require a new RFP.”
When asked if the city could cancel their agreement now, McMahon said, “This is a question for the city.”
Political Issue
The strike has sparked criticism of the Elorza administration, especially by her opponent, Independent candidate Dianne "Dee Dee" Witman.
"Elorza’s administration has failed, yet again, to make basic city functions work. Mayor Elorza’s staff had ample time to develop contingency plans and failed to do so. Instead, he suggested that students and families pay to use ride-sharing services like Uber and Lyft for the duration of the strike. How could he suggest such a thing? Nevermind cost and safety concerns, what message does this send to our students with physical disabilities or who require wheelchairs?" said Witman.
Girl Injured and Parents Distraught
As GoLocalProv first reported, a thirteen-year-old girl was struck riding her bike to school at the corner of Hope Street and Doyle Avenue Thursday morning - the first day of the citywide bus strike in Providence.
“A thirteen-year-old was hit while riding her bike to a local school,” Providence Police Chief Hugh Clements confirmed. “She had minor injuries and was transported to the hospital.”
“We don’t know if she usually rides her bike to school or takes the bus usually,” Clements added. It was later confirmed the student had usually taken a bus to school.
Photos showed police on the scene at Hope and Doyle at 8:45 a.m.
At 4:37 p.m. on Thursday, Providence Public Schools tweeted, “PVD Families: We anticipate that the Teamsters Union bus drivers will continue to strike on Friday, Sept. 28. Most schools have early dismissal times on Friday, so make sure you know what time you should pick up your child.”
In response, Elorza issued no public statements. He did retweet the school department message, but the Mayor’s Twitter feed has been full of announcements about next summer's PVDFest and Jump Bike tweets.
The strike caused chaos across the city for parents. A mother of two children in the Providence school system spoke with GoLocal on Thursday morning and described the difficulties her family is facing with the bus strike.
Alesha Rodriguez-Williams spoke with GoLocal after dropping her son off at Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Elementary School on Camp Street.
"I just got out of hospital yesterday for my third stroke in 10 months," said Rodriguez Williams. "I'm only 27 -- and taking him to school means taking the bus. I'm not supposed to be on the bus. I have motion sickness and photophobia."
"The busses are very important to us. There are people who cannot do this -- some of us just want to raise our kids and cannot do it the right way. This a very big issue," said Rodriguez-Williams.
"I've got two separate children in two separate schools. How am I going to get them both school on a bus for 9 o'clock and I can barely walk?"
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