More than 200 Mat-Su school bus workers strike, making Monday messy for families

By SUZANNE DOWNING

March 1, 2026 – Like their grandparents before them, students in the Mat-Su may have to walk 10 miles in the snow to school this week. Uphill both ways. Well, that might be how it gets told to the grandkids someday.

Across the Matanuska-Susitna Borough, families are scrambling to adjust schedules after more than 200 school bus workers walked off the job, disrupting transportation for the majority of the district’s 18,000-plus students.

The strike begins March 2, having been called by Teamsters Local 959 against Durham School Services.

It affects all the main areas served by Durham. Families have been advised to arrange alternative transportation, as the district warned that no bus service should be expected in impacted areas.

Certain schools are not affected, including those served by alternative contractors or in more remote areas such as Glacier View School, Su-Valley Jr./Sr. High School, and some schools in Willow, Trapper Creek, and Talkeetna.

Fractious negotiations between Durham and the union have been underway since last June, and the contract expired Feb. 4. Sticking points include wages, training requirements, health check policies, and other contract terms. In January, Durham presented what it described as a “final offer,” one that the union  rejected.

No negotiations occurred during February. Union representatives accused the company of delays. After authorizing strike action, the union issued a 10-day strike notice in mid-February. The work stoppage follows a similar strike in 2023 involving the same bargaining unit.

Durham School Services called on the union to avoid prolonging the strike and to honor previously scheduled negotiation dates of March 17–18, 2026, when both sides are expected to meet with a mediator.

In statements, the company said it remains prepared to negotiate and argued that an early walkout unnecessarily disrupts families, pointing to the impact of the 2023 strike.

The strike comes just days before the district’s scheduled spring break, which begins March 6. Students are set to return March 16.

As of now, no resolution has been announced. The duration of the strike will depend on whether the two sides can reach a contract agreement.

In the meantime, Mat-Su parents face a week of logistical challenges, with carpools, adjusted work schedules, and last-minute childcare arrangements replacing the familiar yellow buses that typically carry thousands of students across the borough each day.