Lisbon Schools will be looking to replace a bus in their fleet after one of the vehicles failed inspections this year. The board discussed the potential of purchasing a new bus at this month’s meeting, with a decision potentially coming at May’s school board meeting or a special meeting in April.

Bus number 3, a 2010 Hoover 84 passenger bus, got flagged during an inspection for leaking oil in three locations and rust throughout.

Rod Kelley, transportation director, said that takes the fleet down to twelve buses.

“I have a plan to get us through this season, as long as no other buses go down,” Kelley said. “If we do purchase a bus, the soonest it could arrive would be September or October of this year.”

Kelley said that there is only one bus for sale at the moment at Hoover in Waterloo.

“They have multiple buses coming in, but many of them do not fit our needs,” Kelley said.

Bus 3 had 176,000 miles on it. The district has seven buses in the fleet, six that are very usable.

“Having a seventh bus makes the world of difference for us and buys more time to keep things up and running,” Kelley said.

Cost of a new bus is $205,000 with air conditioning.

Board member John Prasil asked if it would be worth considering making the repairs to engine and frame for the bus instead of purchasing brand new.

Kelley said he would consider those repairs on other buses, but there was more significant issues to bus number 3 that would make that not as cost effective.

“We’d be pushing $40,000 just on the engine, and that doesn’t get to the frame issues we’d have to tackle,” Kelley said. “If these issues happened to a bus with a far more solid frame, I’d be happy to recommend that.”

The bus, which was flagged during an inspection in early March, has had the 30 days to address issues pass, and thus is out of service.