Sigs advice

[UberCree]

I need some advice regarding sigs.

School related comms.  We have ~10 vehicles (busses) and 15 hand held radios.  One central radio in school.
We are currently renting motorola hand held radios from a local retailer and paying what I see as an unusually high price (something around $50.00 per month per unit).

Range needed is approx 20k.

What are our options for purchasing a comms package that would be suitable? 

 

[UberCree]

Manitoba.

 

[Bert]

Corporate cell phones?

http://www.saskschoolboards.ca/CorporateServices/SchoolBusSafety.htm
http://www.starlite.mb.ca/

 

[Harry Potter]

Even though it may kill you to have to fork out all that money every month, it is still in my opinion the preffered way to go.  When you own a system like this, you also have to assume the total cost of the ownership, the maintenance, the life cycle of it, etc...  In a governmental structure like a school board, it is probably easier for you to get a budget for a lower monthly rental fee, than a larger one-shot deal for a capital purchase. 
WRT the actual cost you are being charged, it is diffult to say if it is exagerated or not because I do not know what it entails.  I would hope that at the very least 100% coverage along your bus routes is guaranteed with a 99% availability rate.  Hand-held motorola radios, while still very popular, aren't as reliable as trunking systems have become, especially where cell phone backbones are well established.  Some guys have made excellent suggestions above and if you are in an area that is well populated, I would think that you will get better service out a trunking radio system, and by the looks of it at a better price too.
Cheers,