School buses stuck in snow, district pushes on despite parents’ disapproval

A school bus drives down Front Street on Monday morning, March 13, 2017, in downtown Juneau. (Photo courtesy Tripp J Crouse)
A school bus drives down Front Street on Monday morning, March 13, 2017, in downtown Juneau. (Photo courtesy Tripp J Crouse)

Update | 2:10 p.m. Monday

The National Weather Service in Juneau reports 10.6 inches of snow has fallen at their office in Mendenhall Valley since midnight Monday.

Original Story | 1:50 p.m. Monday

Several school buses were stuck in the snow Monday morning.

David Means, director of administrative services for the Juneau School District oversees busing services.

“There was a bus stuck in Douglas on Second Ave. there. They just needed to put chains on it and then it drove itself out,” Means said. “There were some other special education buses stuck on roads that were not plowed, basically on turnarounds as they were trying to pick up special education students.”

Means said one or two more buses may have been stuck.

He said a spokesman for First Student, the company holding the district’s busing contract, was pleased with how this morning went despite the hangups.

“He noted that some routes were running late, primarily due to the slowness of traffic and they were running late,” Means said. “But overall he said he was very pleased with how things came out this morning.”

The district runs 38 buses.

Some parents have complained that school should not have been open considering how much snow has fallen.

The district made the decision to keep school open using the best information available early this morning, Means said.

This morning, First Student drove the roads to evaluate them. They decided the major thoroughfares were passable. The district also consults The Juneau Police Department and the City and Borough of Juneau before it decides whether to hold classes.

“(If) we make a decision to close school, that would be a day that would have to be made up and also many parents who both work often would have to find very last minute daycare arrangements and, or, choose to stay home themselves,” Means said. “We find that when we make a decision to close schools, we’re making it not just for our school system but for the whole community.”

Superintendent Mark Miller said this is his second time deciding whether to close school for snow in his three years with the district. He said whether students can commute to school and back safely is the only factor considered in his decisions.

The National Weather Service expects 3-5 inches of snow to fall today. There is a winter storm warning in effect until 6 pm.

Editor’s note: In a previous version of this story, the word “disapproval” was misspelled in the headline. It has be corrected.

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