In Minneapolis, the district is offering hiring bonuses - as well as retention bonuses for current drivers - and has added 10 new drivers since the start of the new year.
District officials said they expected high school students to rely on public transit through the end of the school year. Paul, the district staggered start times for seven schools and canceled bus service to four high schools, instead offering students Metro Transit cards. Many districts have implemented some quick fixes in the short term, but solutions in the long term won’t come easy.
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Many parents predict the driver shortage to be part of the “new normal” that they’ll need to adapt to.
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“I’m grateful for the ability to drive and offer up my empty seats to other kids in the neighborhood who need them.” How to solve the problem long term? “There is no waiting for late buses in the morning, and we don’t have to second-guess how everyone is getting to school each day, which brings the anxiety down quite a bit,” she said. Each day, Clotfelter spends about 2 1/2 hours in her car getting all of the kids to and from school. Eventually, the district transportation department found a driver with an aide for the route however, the family vowed to continue driving in hopes of freeing up the driver for another route.
When there was no driver, Clotfelter committed to driving her sons and her neighbor’s child who took the same bus. The lack of consistent busing proved to be extra challenging for her sons, who thrive on routines because change can be disruptive. They started off the year with no driver for their Northeast Middle School route in Minneapolis, and once there was a driver, the bus would arrive two hours into the school day. As part of their individualized education program, they get door-to-door busing with a smaller group of students and also have an aide on their bus. “She knows I’m never just leaving her there because I forgot about her.”įor Erin Clotfelter, the transportation complications have been especially troublesome for her two eldest sons, who have autism. The second grader understood the difficulties, though, Núñez-Gibbs said. Her daughter is no longer waiting for hours after school with her teachers, whom Núñez-Gibbs said stayed with her daughter “out of the kindness of their hearts” to help during a challenging situation. Núñez-Gibbs said it appeared the district cut her daughter’s route, and moved everyone onto other routes. It took about two weeks and a handful of conversations with everyone from district transportation employees to the school’s vice principal to ensure there would be a bus stop at her daughter’s park and recreation program. As a result, many buses that are operating are overcrowded and running long routes, putting unvaccinated children at risk. Additionally, many routes have been combined to accommodate a lack of drivers.
Parents have said it’s common for school buses to not show up at all, and when they do, to show up late - sometimes even hours late. Some have turned to carpools with friends and neighbors, while in other cases, school staffers or after-school care employees have stepped up to fill the void. “That has been the life-saver for us, all of us,” Walters said.Īmid the nationwide bus driver shortage, which persists three months into the academic year, parents are coming up with workarounds in how they get their kids to and from school each day. Nokomis Heights Lutheran Church allows program staff members to pick up students from school and bring them to the care center in a church bus. Thankfully, the church where the care program is housed came up with a more permanent solution.