The Litchfield Elementary School District Governing Board received a substantive update Oct. 14 on transportation operations, staffing and fleet management from Director of Transportation Dr. Stone, Director Tassin and Assistant Director Kleinman.

Dr. Stone opened the presentation by saying safety is the department’s “utmost concern” and described improvements since new leadership and staffing changes. Transportation leaders told trustees they have not canceled any routes so far this school year, a change from previous years when shortages forced dozens of cancellations. The department credited new hires, an internal training program and the growth of a smaller “white fleet” of district vehicles used for certain out‑of‑district and McKinney‑Vento student transports.

Staff described recruiting and training challenges tied to recent federal entry-level driver training (ELDT) rules and Arizona testing requirements: a federally required curriculum with 93 topics, a state minimum that currently includes a minimum of 14 classroom hours and 20 hours of behind‑the‑wheel training, and a 2½-hour third‑party road test. Assistant Director Kleinman said training time has fallen from multiple months toward a two‑month target and that the district is pursuing ADOT site approval to perform third‑party testing in-house to shorten delays.

Transportation staff also described fleet and cost issues. Fleet manager data showed higher annual mileage on special‑education vehicles (door‑to‑door service) and noted an industry expectation that replacement costs will rise because of new EPA-related standards; the district estimates replacing 56 vehicles across gen‑ed, special‑education and mini‑bus fleets over the next 10–12+ years at roughly $8.9 million using current pricing. Staff said fuel and maintenance are material costs (fuel combined for diesel and unleaded about $309,000 last year; maintenance near $400,000).

Leaders said a concrete example shows savings from the white fleet: bringing one outplaced student back into district-run service saved about $7,000 a month compared with third‑party vendor costs; the district cited per‑trip comparisons roughly $295 per trip (vendor) vs. $30.15 per trip (in‑house) for that case.

Trustees asked about retention, pay competitiveness and whether the district will use retention-repayment language for driver CDL training; staff said they are developing an approach aligned with existing district programs and will present details to HR. Board members thanked staff for the work that reduced cancellations and asked staff to continue improving parent and school communication about routes and stop procedures.

Staff highlighted other work: DMV/DPS collaboration on statewide training materials, an evacuation video used this year, RFID bus-pass troubleshooting and plans to improve dispatcher redundancy and communication protocols. Director Tassin and Kleinman said they will continue to refine route efficiency, recruitment, compensation strategy and a replacement schedule for older buses.