SPECIAL UPDATE (Results of Called Meeting)   

In Wednesday afternoon's special called meeting of the Rutherford County School Board, contracts with four contractors during today’s special-called meeting. We will spend the next couple of weeks securing additional contractors to cover the remaining routes.

Rutherford County Schools Chief Communications Officer James Evans told WGNS there is an update for parents and students about the bus routes issue we’ve been working through this week.

To recap, we had to take 41 buses out of service effective Monday because the contractor who carried the insurance lost his coverage. Last night, the Rutherford County Board of Education terminated the contracts for those 41 buses, and will spend the next couple of weeks securing new contractors to cover those routes.

In the meantime, we have worked with our other contractors to cover all routes, although we know there have been significant delays on some of those routes because in some cases, the contractors are making multiple runs with one bus. The only routes not covered are the three shuttle buses that serve Central Magnet, Oakland’s IB program, and Holloway High School. We are working to restore those buses as soon as possible, but it may be another couple of weeks.

Evans stressed, "While we are working to restore all routes to normal, if parents have any questions about coverage for your child’s school bus, please contact our Transportation Director, Audrey Johnson, at his direct extension by calling 615-893-5812 ext. 22144."

Earlier Story

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. (WGNS) — An emergency meeting has been scheduled as transportation disruptions continue across Rutherford County Schools, where approximately 40 school buses were sidelined earlier this week due to an insurance lapse involving an independent owner-contractor.

The Rutherford County Board of Education will hold a special-called meeting today - February 25 at 3:30 p.m. at the district’s Southpark Drive office to address the issue. According to the posted agenda, board members are expected to take action to reinstate specific contractors to resume bus service, including buses 187, 195, 140, and 176 .

The disruption began after a contracted bus owner lost required insurance coverage, rendering dozens of buses ineligible to operate under district policy. Unlike many districts that maintain centralized fleets, Rutherford County contracts with independent bus owners, meaning lapses in insurance immediately impact route coverage.

RCS spokesperson James Evans previously confirmed the district has been negotiating with other qualified contractors to minimize service gaps. Parents of students assigned to affected routes have been receiving direct notifications from the transportation department regarding daily route status.

District officials have stated that any absences or tardiness directly related to the lack of bus service will be excused. However, administrators warned that even students on unaffected routes could experience delays due to reassignments and logistical adjustments.

The buses previously listed as out of service include:

10–99: 12, 16, 27, 39, 61, 65, 75, 84, 96, 97
100–199: 100, 114, 115, 129, 130, 140, 160, 168, 176, 187, 189, 195, 199
200–299: 204, 211, 212, 215, 220, 227, 237, 244, 258, 290
300+: 303, 309, 313, 315, 320, 323, 326, 327

Wednesday’s board action is expected to focus on restoring service for certain routes and establishing a longer-term plan to prevent similar insurance-related disruptions moving forward. District leaders have indicated that a comprehensive update will follow the meeting outlining next steps and projected timelines for full restoration of transportation services.