A City Council hearing called to root out the causes of the city’s skyrocketing school-bus costs took a detour when lawmakers walloped the schools chancellor for his resistance to resolving a bruising weeks-old bus strike.
In the face of sometimes tense questioning, Chancellor Dennis Walcott repeatedly insisted that only the striking members of the Amalgamated Transit Union’s Local 1181 could end the work stoppage, which was launched after the city removed decades-old job protections from new bids for bus-company contracts.
“There’s no middle road,” said Walcott. “We’re not mediating between a union and the [bus] companies. It’s not our role to do that at all.”
The unwavering responses drove some council members to rail at the Department of Education for dropping the ball on getting thousands of students — many of whom have been stranded at home since Jan. 16 — to and from school.
Particularly hard hit have been wheelchair-bound and other physically disabled students — thousands of whom have been missing therapy at school that advocates say is vital to their well-being.
“You’re like an ostrich with your head in the sand!” Education Committee Chairman Robert Jackson told Walcott.
“I’m very, very disappointed in you and the mayor being adamant about the fact that you’re not involved in this.
“I’m disappointed because over 100,000 students are being impacted.”
There are more than twice as many special-ed routes as general-ed routes running for school-age kids.
Local 1181 president Michael Cordiello repeated his prior call for the city to help resolve the painful standoff.
“Local 1181 is committed to seeking a quick and responsible end to this strike, but cannot do so if the administration . . . is unwilling to come to the table to participate in cost-saving discussions,” he said.
While there was some debate about the $1 billion price tag for school-age yellow busing, the question of route efficiency wasn’t even mentioned until nearly two hours into the hearing.
The city has added more than 1,000 routes since the year 2000, despite a ridership decrease of 30,000 kids.
The bulk of those routes were added to handle new summer school and extended day service.
Despite the steep costs, DOE officials acknowledged there are more than two dozen special-education bus routes that transport just one student to and from school.
They said nearly 400 of 6,700 bus routes carry fewer than five students.
“We do the routing. but also the routing is determined based on the [individualized education plan] for the student, if the student has to get to school by a certain time, if that program is two hours away — all that impacts that,” he told reporters after testifying.
The average special-ed route cost the city $160,000 last year, while general education routes ran $116,000 each, according to DOE data.