Due to a gap between provincial funding and actual transportation costs, the Wild Rose School Division will be charging busing fees for students beginning in the 2026/27 school year.
In a statement to the parents, WRSD superintendent Jodie Mattia explained that rising costs for transportation are the reason for the new fees. Since 2019, the division has been using contracted operators for busing to reduce costs associated with maintenance and replacement. Beginning in the 2024/25 school year, the division has been unable to stretch the grant funds from the province to cover all expenses.
“… bus contractors are experiencing rising costs in maintaining and updating the bus fleet, fuel and insurance,” says Mattia in her statement.
The decision on the fees was made at the January 20 board meeting.
“This is our second year in a row with a million dollars in deficit for transportation,” says WRSD board chair Daryl Scott.
The fees that parents will have to pay will depend on how far they are from the school their child is attending. Scott says students are divided into two categories for busing: eligible and ineligible, and the rate they pay depends where the students fall.
Eligible students are K-6 students who live more than 1.6 km from their school and 7-12 students who live more than 2 km from their school. The busing fees for these students will be $300.
Ineligible students are K-6 students who live less than 1.6 km from their school and 7-12 students who live less than 2 km from their school. The busing fees for these students will be $600.
The fee will be applied to every child using WRSD transportation services, with families getting a discounted rate when they have three or more children using the busing system.
Scott says the transportation funds they receive from the Province are separate from the funds they give for the students’ education. During the first year of deficit, the division used funds from their transportation reserve to cover the gap.
Rather than implementing these fees on parents without notice, the division will be covering the difference using funds meant for classrooms and instruction. In 2026/27, the implemented fees will be used for cost recovery of the transportation expenses incurred by the division above and beyond what the Province provides in their funding.
Scott says in many cases, the buses in the division aren’t being fully utilized by students. There are seats available for every registered child, but some of them are finding alternate means of getting to school.
Scott says in many cases, the buses in the division aren’t being fully utilized by students. There are seats available for every registered child, but some of them are finding alternate means of getting to school.
“The majority of our buses on paper are full, but people aren’t using the bus,” says Scott.
He says the fee may deter those who aren’t actually using the bus from holding onto a seat, which might allow the division to reduce some of the routes and save some costs as well. However, he says they still have to be careful with rerouting because they want to have students home at a reasonable hour.
Mattia says there will be payment options made available for parents who do not wish to pay the whole fee at the beginning of next year.
Parents who have questions or concerns about the fees are encouraged to call the Ward One trustees, Becky May at 780-514-6122, or Daryl Scott at 780-542-1945, or the Ward Two trustee, Holly Ekstrom, at 780-696-2065. Questions may also be directed to the division itself at 403-845-3376.
