Tose improvements made such a differ- ence that Flatt said a visiting salesman from Blue Bird “couldn’t get over how good they looked.” In fact, during another spring break, a driver who
had just returned to the yard after a sports trip even inquired about how to get behind the wheel of one of these “new” buses. “Basically the hardest part was cleaning the bus
up,” Flatt added. “Te mechanics (also) went over them with a fine-tooth comb. We were just trying to extend the life of them.” He said seat reconditioning projects can cost a
district as little as $120 to $1,500. Restoring the luster of an older bus is one thing, but what about when a district needs to stretch the service life of a bus or sev- eral buses because there isn’t enough money to replace them?
One solution employed
by school districts to replace bus fleets is to look toward contractor companies to assist with expedited turn- over. Another option that is growing in popularity is literally extending the service life through reconditioning or refurbishing projects that go far beyond a wax job or even a new coat or two of paint. Some contractors have
£ Before (left) and after shots of seat cover replacements performed several years ago at Peach County Schools in Georgia.
“At a quarter of the cost of a new bus, you can do a
“Really, if you take care of school buses, they can last at least 15 years, sometimes up to 18 depending on the climate,” said John Benish, COO of Cook-Il- linois. “I can tell you for sure that the older models are much more reliable, easier to take care of and the drivers prefer driving them.” Aaron Harris said seat
complete tear down, and at that point you have a pretty darn near new bus.” -Aaron Harris, BESI
undertaken similar projects. Cook-Illinois Corporation, which owns 20 subsid- iaries that serve the greater Chicago area, undertook several years ago to breathe new life into two 1999 International Harvester chassis with Tomas Built bodies. While the contractor said the service never really caught on with customers, refurbs remain a good method of keeping older school buses in service amid budget woes.
cover and securements manufacturer BESI is seeing more and more refurbishing projects as school districts try to extend bus life. “At a quarter of the cost
of a new bus you can do a complete tear down, and at that point you have a pretty darn near new bus,” said the national account sales and training manager. One of the biggest needs
for districts is to replace metal
seat pans that come loose and need to be re-welded. Harris also pointed to brand-new foam as well as seat covers that are fire-block tested and repaired seats that must be equipped with a new wooden board. In addition to fire block seats, Flatt added that
districts should also be eyeing LED upgrades to their eight-way lighting and stop-arm systems, new signage and more.
www.stnonline.com 57
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