CANANDAIGUA, N.Y. — After 35 years in the school bus industry, Scott Goble will retire at the end of July from his longtime position as director of transportation for Canandaigua City School District.

Goble had been working in management for a public transit system before beginning his pupil transportation career in 1981, when he was hired by a small contractor that operated school buses and motorcoaches.

“I did every job there was, from scheduling charters to overhauling engines to scheduling routes for the school buses,” Goble said.

The small contractor was later acquired by Laidlaw, and that large contractor moved Goble into various management positions around New York state over the following years. In 1989, Goble went to work for Ballston Spa (N.Y.) Central School District before being recruited the following year by Canandaigua City School District, which was one of his customers when he was with Laidlaw.

At Canandaigua, Goble oversees a fleet of 65 school buses and a team that transports 3,450 students daily. His top challenges have been common to many in the pupil transportation field: staffing shortages and student disciplinary issues.

“My challenges are no different than anyone else doing this job,” he said. “We just keep doing the best we can and don’t lose hope.”

As one highlight of his career, Goble cites his involvement with the New York Association for Pupil Transportation (NYAPT) and its efforts to improve the school transportation industry in the state. As a recent example, Goble’s district hosted the filming of NYAPT/Fortress Mobile video that makes the case for allowing stop-arm cameras on school buses in New York.

Another perk of Goble's pupil transportation career has been the people he has worked with at Canandaigua for the past 26 years.

“I have had some truly great employees who really care about ‘their kids,’" Goble said. “The school district administration has been very supportive of my department all of those 26 years, and that has helped my department immensely.”

In retirement, Goble said that he will “slow down just a little bit” and do some traveling. He won’t be leaving the yellow bus world entirely, though: He plans to do some school transportation-related work as a consultant.