A unit of Paris-based Veolia Environnement SA has replaced Laidlaw Transit Services Inc. to run the Orange County transit agency’s bus service for the handicapped and elderly.
The Orange County Transportation Authority awarded a $95.5 million contract to Veolia unit Connex Transit Inc. to run bus service for three years starting July 1.
Veolia is set to operate out of the transportation agency’s 10.5-acre Irvine bus base and maintenance facility, where Laidlaw had employed 647 workers.
The transit agecny said it carries more than 1.1 million handicapped and elderly passengers annually.
Laidlaw, which had operated the contract for about 15 years, said it was “disappointed” by the loss.
“On our end, we are working hard to find places for management staff,” said a spokeswoman for Laidlaw Transit Services in Overland Park, Kan. “We are disappointed. We had a longstanding relationship with them,” she said.
