Commuters in the Pascagoula-Gautier area are seeing some bigger buses taking students to and from school these days. The Pascagoula-Gautier School District is now the proud owner of two new 71-passenger school buses. The buses offer room for six more passengers than the standard 65-passenger buses and will help to alleviate overcrowding, according to PGSD Transportation Director Joe Gatschet. “We test drove the buses last July. The buses have a wider turning radius, and maneuvered well on the streets of Pascagoula and Gautier,” Gatschet said. “They are three feet longer than the 65-passenger buses and air-conditioned, – a feature that the school district is continuing to ensure we have on all new buses added to our fleet as we replace the older non-air-conditioned buses. Half of our fleet of buses is now air-conditioned.” The transportation department’s 135 staff members use 100 buses to service 4,500 students on 120 routes for transportation to and from school on a daily basis. In addition, the department provides transportation service to athletic and band competitions, field trips, shuttles for the College and Career Technology Institute and after-school tutoring. “Cumulatively, we travel about 68,000 miles per month or 680,000 per school year, Gatschet said. “We are required by state law to furnish transportation to students living one or more miles from their school. Our role in the transportation department is to serve the students of our district for all of their transportation needs. Safety is our priority, and we strive to give superior service to our students.”
