RALEIGH — The Wake County school system Monday opened a centralized office to handle questions and complaints about school bus service, which has dominated the opening of traditional-calendar schools this year.

The schools said in an announcement that the Transportation Customer Service Center would take over handling calls that had been going to 15 regional centers. Those centers’ phones will automatically forward to the new centralized office at 919-856-7890.

Officials said the new operation would have “significantly increased voice mail capacity” for parents to leave messages outside of the 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. hours the office is staffed. Numerous parents complained that they could not leave messages during the first week of school because the voice mail boxes for the regional offices were full.

The district opened the traditional-calendar year with fewer buses on the road as a money-saving measure. After an outcry about buses running late or never arriving, the school system put more vehicles into service.

“With a centralized office, our customer service representatives will be better equipped to provide timely information on mechanical failures and other delays, and to contribute to more timely resolution of transportation-related issues,” the system’s statement said.