New bus depot to save district $400K in fuel, driver pay

NORTH PORT, Fla. — Sarasota County Schools has built a bus depot in North Port, which officials say will save the district an estimated $400,000 annually in fuel costs and driver pay, the Herald-Tribune reports.

The depot that was previously used is at Venice’s Taylor Ranch Elementary School, which is about 48 miles from North Port High School, and as North Port grew, officials realized that buses were driving deadhead miles from the terminal in Venice to their first and last pickups of the day. The district now plans to close the Venice terminal.

Ellery Girard, transportation director for the district, told the Herald-Tribune that the new depot in North Port greatly reduces the number of empty miles the buses travel. Girard also said that bus pickup times and routes are not expected to change, so students won’t be affected.
 
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