A new audit on operations in the Jefferson County School District’s central office, “Final Report of a Study of the ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE AND CENTRAL OFFICE STAFFING, FUNCTIONS, AND OPERATIONS,” says on page 28 that “Transportation services were found to be very expensive, amounting to $54,648,585 in 2008-09, $57,085,703 in 2009-10, and $62,544,974 in 2010-11.”

That’s a 14.4 percent increase in just a two-year period. This is different from earlier transportation cost figures for Jefferson County, which the audit says were inaccurate.

Some other interesting points:

• 70.7 percent of all students in Jefferson County are bused.

• Nationwide, only 49 percent of the country’s students are bused.

• Real cost to bus in Jefferson County in 2010 was $902.85 per student.

• An earlier, erroneous, report by the Council of Great City Schools said the per pupil busing cost was only $650 per student.

The auditors did not specifically identify the reasons for the disparities, saying:

“It will take considerable work and study to determine what the problems and issues are in achieving an adequate and efficient transportation system.”

Why hasn’t this obvious and important work already been accomplished? Well, it seems that such management hasn’t been a priority despite the huge sums being spent. Why do I say this? The auditors also say:

“Incredibly, the number of pupils bused is apparently not monitored or tallied by the JCPS transportation department.”

Good grief! How can this incompetently run school bus system not even know how many students it is serving? How can you possibly budget and plan when things are this chaotic.

Is ANYONE paying attention to anything in Louisville?!!!Jefferson County superintendent Donna Hargens clearly has her work cut out for her.