"Lemons" prompt extra school bus purchases for Decorah Schools

The Decorah Community School Board approved two new bus purchases on Monday night for their usual replacement cycle into the fall fleet. The cost of those buses from Hoglund Bus Company will total approximately $170,000.

But they also had to deal with replacing two buses that were described as "lemons" by Transportation Director Jim Samuelson. He detailed the very significant breakdown history of the two buses and emphasized the necessity of dealing with the problem before the upcoming and hectic spring schedules. He told of having to keep spare buses running in the cold winter months to go out on emergency runs because of the frequent problems from these lemon buses.

The two new replacement buses are currently in stock and, allowing for trade in, will cost a total of approximately $65,000.  Board members noted that the trade in and purchase would not prevent them from seeking recourse for the poorly performing units. Staff noted the extensive documentation that has been done regarding the problems and the inability of the bus company to resolve the problems. That company was not invited to submit bids for the new buses.