The purchase of new buses has been put on hold by the Living Sky School Division until they know what kind of funding will be coming from the Ministry of Education.
The real question mark, says Colin Westgard, transportation manager for the division, is a possible decision around centres of under 5,000 population that could make North Battleford the division's only "grantable" centre.
Meanwhile, the transportation department is dealing with a number of other challenges, including a shortage of people willing to become bus drivers as well as a shortage of mechanics who want to work in the division's new bus garage.
At a recent board of education meeting, transportation officials made a report to trustees that also prompted a discussion about cold weather policy.
Although it wasn't discussed at the meeting, the division recently came under criticism from the mother of a Connaught School student who rode home on the bus, and was dropped off two blocks away from home, without a coat on one of the coldest days of the winter.
An apology has been issued and staff have discussed how a similar situation could be avoided in the future.
When not to bus children at all during cold weather was a topic brought up during the transportation report by Ron Kozlowski of Hafford, who said there are buses that run no matter how cold it is because the drivers also work at the school. He said it's difficult for the staff to know how to proceed with teaching when only half the kids are at school. There should be a point when all buses are cancelled, he said.
The division's policy is currently that when it gets to be -40 C, and presumably includes windchill factors, the driver is advised to make a decision whether to run or not - if, in fact, their buses even start.
However, trustee Garth Link pointed out, the final decision is the parents'. If the bus is running but the parents don't feel it is safe to send their kids, they have every right to keep them home, said Link.
Chair Ken Arsenault said transportation policy will be under discussion at the board's upcoming spring retreat.
Last year, the cost of operating the division's transportation department was $6,550 million, plus an additional half million for the purchase of spare buses.
