Missteps of 2023 Howard County school bus issues revealed in audit report

BALTIMORE - An independent audit revealed what led to the school bus issues at the beginning of last school year in Howard County.

Prismatic Services presented its findings to the school board on Thursday, stating that unfilled staff positions played a key role in some of the problems. The audit also showed the California-based company Zum, contracted to provide bus service, was overconfident in the job. 

Last year, Zum signed a three-year, $27 million contract with the Howard County Public School System to operate nearly half of its bus routes.

However, at the start of the 2023-24 school year, some students waited hours for a bus, while others weren't picked up at all. Some students got on the wrong bus.

"The failures in transportation last fall resulted from missteps and actions taken internally, as well as externally," Howard County Public Schools Superintendent Bill Barnes said.

What the audit says

The audit found important positions within the school district's transportation office weren't filled before the start of the year, which created a lapse in bus routes being created.

The audit accused Zum of overstating their abilities and underdelivering, and failing to admit to the school system they had no experience serving a large school district. 

"Zum did not dry run all its routes," Barnes said. "Simply put, the company did not practice sufficiently before day one." 

Zum said in statement that, "We strongly disagree with the statements in the student transportation audit."

The contractor also said the challenges were factored into this year's start of school, resulting in 100% route coverage and 97% on-time performance.

County held accountable

The audit held Howard County accountable. It said the county spends less money on transportation services than what is recommended, which is often discussed during yearly county budget meetings.