Every weekday, around 650 yellow buses transport thousands of students to Milwaukee Public Schools.
But as the Iran war has caused diesel prices to skyrocket, the cost to fill up one standard-sized bus has gone from about $260 to over $450.
David Fifarek is the senior director of business and transportation services at MPS. He explains that the district agrees to three-year contracts with private bus companies.
Those companies buy fuel based on the average, or benchmark, fuel price for the year. That benchmark ticks up each year based on the CPI, or consumer price index.
“Just because diesel prices go up, it is not necessarily a dollar for dollar or cent for cent increase on our costs," Fifarek explains, adding that the three-year contracts for busing help the district plan for rising costs.
But last year, the fuel cost benchmark in one MPS contract was $4.14. That's less than the cost for regular gas today.
When fuel costs exceed the benchmark, the district needs to pay a gas surcharge to the bus company.
“If everything remains as where we're at right now, we're anticipating a $3.4 to $4 million cost factor that we didn't anticipate because prices for diesel have never hit this high," Fifarek says.
MPS has tried to cut busing costs by eliminating routes, buying electric
To cut costs, this school year MPS consolidated some bus stops and eliminated 150 bus routes. Each route eliminated equates to about $25,000 in savings for the district.
MPS is also rolling out electric buses to help insulate the district from future gas price fluctuation.
It has 50 electric buses right now and will add another 100 in the next two years.
Do you have a question about education or how schools work in our area? Submit it here to WUWM education reporter Katherine Kokal.
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