With a new company in the driver's seat, Beaufort County's school buses generally are running on time and with fewer problems than they did last year, school administrators say.

First Student, the company the Beaufort County School District hired to manage its 127 school buses this year, has been on the job for less than three months. But service already is more timely and reliable than it was last year, said Larry Wilson, director of operations for the Beaufort County School District.

"There were a few challenges at the beginning of the year with buses being on time," he said, but things are going better now.

The company, which the district will pay $2.9 million this year to provide home-to-school transportation for the district's 18,000 students, replaced Laidlaw Educational Services. The district paid Laidlaw $2.9 million for home-to-school transportation last year.

The district signed a contract with First Student just two months after accepting the company's bid. That was in stark contrast to a past situation with Laidlaw, when it took about 18 months for a contract to be signed.

Laidlaw managed the district's buses from 1995 through the 2003-04 school year, but parents and school officials complained so much about the company's service that the district sought out a new vendor.

Problems ranged from late buses to a bus running out of gas on the William Hilton Parkway, snarling morning rush-hour traffic.

Okatie, Hilton Head and Bluffton elementary schools had the most problems with bus service last year, district officials have said. But administrators at all three schools said things are better this year.

At Okatie Elementary last year, some students got home late almost every day, at times up to two hours late.

But Jamie Pinckney, the school's principal, said that for the past three weeks, students have gotten out of school at 3:30 p.m., and by 3:45 p.m., all the buses have loaded and left.

"I'm ecstatic," Pinckney said.

At Hilton Head Elementary, executive principal Mary Briggs said overall service was better, although one bus still usually is late each morning and afternoon.

Principals and district administrators say they've found First Student to be more responsive to problems than their predecessor.

Donna Alosa, regional operations manager for First Student, said there were a few "hiccups" in the beginning of the year with overcrowded buses and stops that had been left off of routes.

The biggest challenges the company faces, she said, are getting enough buses from the state and dealing with older equipment that often breaks down.

"Hardly a day goes by without a breakdown," she said.

If a lot of problems arise later in the school year, Wilson said, the contract between the district and First Student includes financial penalties for poor service.

Principals at each school will rate the company's performance as excellent, very good, good, fair or poor during each quarter. They will consider whether buses arrived on time, drivers were courteous, management communicated with the school, students were loaded and unloaded safely and the company responded to complaints in a timely manner.

If any areas have a "poor" rating, the district and First Student will make a plan for improvement, Wilson said. If the company is rated "poor" in any area for two quarters in a row, it is charged $100 per area. If the problems persist for another quarter, the penalty is raised to $200 per area.

But Alosa said she didn't foresee mounting problems. In fact, after just a few months in Beaufort County, she said, she's sure First Student can do the job.