It’s time for Page Two: News that might not make the front page for Friday, January 23, 2026.
The Mat-Su Borough School District is bracing for a possible bus driver strike. Superintendent Trani warned the school board at their Wednesday meeting that negotiations are heating up between Durham School Services and the school bus drivers.
Durham has been taken over by the national company Summit. The school bus drivers, monitors, and attendants are members of Teamsters Local 959.
The school district has no say in the negotiations. They contract bus services out to private companies.
The district will scramble to provide whatever transportation it can for students if there is a strike. Special education students will be the priority according to the staff report at the Wednesday school board meeting.
Durham employees left work without warning the last time they went on strike. Union officials say this time will be different. The union will follow state labor law. They will give a 10-day warning if they decide to strike according to the Mat-Su Sentinel.
The school district did not get that message. At the Wednesday school board meeting, people were worried that the district will not have time to meet the transportation needs of their students if a strike occurs.
School district options are limited. State law prohibits the use of state funds to pay for transportation for students living less than 1.5 miles from school.
The current contract between Durham and the bus drivers expires on February 4 according to the Mat-Su Sentinel. A strike could begin as early as mid-February.
The likely response to a strike is the use of pre-paid gas cards to fill the gap. The district did that last time. It does take time to purchase the cards. And they don’t want to purchase them unless needed. That ten-day lead time would make a big difference.
In other news from the Wednesday school board meeting, the school district is asking the state legislature for a boost in transportation funding for the next school year. The borough’s physical size is a challenge. The district hopes that the legislature will help.
The school district doesn’t expect the legislature to raise the Base Student Allocation. Legislators from all corners of Alaska are experiencing “education fatigue” after years of contentious debate about school funding.
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This Page Two article was written by David Cheezem and read by Lee Henrikson. If you have an idea for a Page 2 topic, please email us at page2@radiofreepalmer.org.
That’s it for today and the news on Page Two on Friday January 23. 2026.