Following a large number of Lion electric school buses not being able to operate on Monday, parents are facing continued disruptions in school transportation routes on Tuesday due to ongoing inspections keeping the buses off the road.
The English Montreal School Board (EMSB) announced that three Autobus Séguin electric buses, namely buses 501, 508, and 511, have been approved for service and will resume student pickups on Tuesday. However, all Transco electric buses remain grounded awaiting inspection, resulting in no bus transportation available for students on Tuesday. The list of affected buses can be found on the school board’s website.
Parents are requested to make alternative arrangements to transport their children to and from school for the day. Meanwhile, the Lester B. Pearson School Board (LBPSB) informed parents via email late on Monday that over 50 bus routes will be cancelled on Tuesday for inspection purposes. Parents are advised to arrange alternative transportation, with childcare services provided for elementary bus users needing early drop-offs and late pickups.
A recent incident involving a school bus catching fire in Montreal led to the removal of 1,200 Lion buses for inspection. Lion had initially announced that the fleet would gradually return to service starting Monday in Quebec.
Chantale Dugas, president of the Fédération des transporteurs par autobus (FTA), stated that Lion issued a revised inspection bulletin to carriers late on Sunday, outlining specific electrical connections to be checked during inspections, which also include diesel buses.
Some school boards, including EMSB and LBPSB, were working on solutions on Sunday night and informed parents about the buses not being in service on Monday. Dugas mentioned that some school service centers had permitted their transport carriers to resume operations.
Transport carrier owner Andrew Jones of Transport Scolaire Élite and Autobus Beaconsfield mentioned that spare vehicles were utilized to ensure student pickups, but highlighted the unsustainable nature of this temporary measure. He expressed concern over the uncertainty faced by the population regarding the availability of school buses for their children.
Quebec’s new education minister, Sonia LeBel, assured on Radio-Canada’s Tout un matin show that barring unforeseen circumstances, the situation should normalize in the coming days. She emphasized that engineers following specific procedures would determine the buses’ operational status and mentioned that there were no current indications of the Lion fleet needing retirement.
