The Española School District’s Transportation Department scrambled Monday to find replacement drivers after four bus drivers from Garcia Transportation Services quit.
Transportation Director Sennie Quintana said she received more than 30 calls Monday morning from parents questioning the arrival of their child’s bus. None of the drivers could be reached by phone to explain why they quit, and Quintana said she did not know the reasons.
The bus routes fall under the responsibility of Garcia Transportation Corp. whose owner, Antonio Garcia, died in January. Garcia’s widow, Yvonne Quintana, said Tuesday afternoon that one bus driver quit Friday and the other three quit Sunday.
Later that evening at the School Board’s Transportation Committee meeting, Yvonne Quintana was announced as the new representative for Garcia Transportation. She replaced Roberta Salazar, Garcia’s niece. Yvonne Quintana, an Española attorney, admitted to the committee that she had taken over the company.
“It was a surprise to me in the matter in which the company was turned over to me,” Yvonne Quintana said.
Yvonne Quintana had been in dispute with Garcia’s sisters, Darlene Armijo and Cathy Salazar, over financial control of Garcia’s three businesses, according to a restraining order filed by Yvonne Quintana in January. Calls to Armijo and Salazar were not returned. She had divorced her husband last May and married Garcia in December.
What is known about the transfer of ownership to Yvonne Quintana is that the District will temporarily supply Garcia Transportation three of its buses and four of its drivers.
The largest route affected by the shuffling of drivers is bus number 40 that covers the Rio Chama area and delivers students to the middle and high schools. Bus numbers 23 and 38 also take students to the secondary schools from the Alcalde and Riverside Drive areas, respectively. Bus number 36 picks students up from the Velarde area and takes them to the elementary school.
Because of a SUN’s reporter presence at the committee meeting, Yvonne Quintana would not publicly comment at the meeting about her intentions with the company.
“I’ve asked for an audience with the Board tomorrow,” shesaid. “I feel that it would be appropriate to let all of the Board know exactly what’s happening rather than having them read it in the newspaper.”