By Eliza Shapiro
Capital New York
Mayor Bill de Blasio will expand a grant program created last year to subsidize experienced school bus drivers and provide them with the benefits former mayor Michael Bloomberg eliminated during his administration, leading to a month-long school bus strike.
The $42 million grant program was created to restore those benefits; 1,200 bus drivers and matrons benefited from the program last year, according to the administration. The city has the authority to expand the program by a year without City Council approval.
The city will use $15 million in unused funds from the program, and additional city money if necessary, over the next year.
The administration is also hoping the state Legislature will pass a law this session guaranteeing benefits for school bus drivers, though de Blasio has so far failed to get traction in Albany on this issue.
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