New MHS Bus is Ready to Roll

Watch out South Dakota! Here come the Milbank Area Bulldogs! Starting today, the Bulldogs will be riding in style.

According to Superintendent Tim Graf, “The bus is all set and ready to use today for middle school girls basketball. I feel it will generate a lot of pride and excitement for our students and staff.”

DeFea Transportation and the Milbank School District purchased the bus from Foreman Bus in Miller. The bus was being used under a contract with the Winner School District, but Winner recently got a new bus. The decal and screening work was completed yesterday, and Pat DeFea surprised the school board, staff, and students by visiting the school with the bus.

The bus will be used for as many out of town activities as possible. “There will be times when there are more than one out of town events on the same day,” says Graf. “Generally speaking, it will come down to distance, number of students involved, and the age of the students involved, but that will be Pat’s call as the operator.” Graf also said if there is only one activity, the bus will always be used unless it’s unavailable due to maintenance.

“With the distance we often have to travel, this bus will be nice,” says Graf. “For example, just this past week, FFA was in Pierre and the wrestlers were in Rapid City. We are starting to see more schools go this route, as it’s a much more affordable option than a coach bus. We are still able to enjoy coach seating and air ride on a school bus chassis at a fraction of the cost. A coach bus would cost three to four times what a bus like this does.”