“It’s a big problem,” he said. “Some had to find another job and some retired. Now, 18, 19 months later, back to school” and the driver “isn’t there.”
Districts are trying to make school bus driving more lucrative, offering signing bonuses and organizing recruitment programs to entice new drivers. First Student, a school bus transportation contractor, offered $4,000 to new drivers in Helena, Mont. The company also staged recruitment programs called “Big Bus, No Big Deal,” during which people were invited to test yellow buses on a large scale, without dozens of children.
“Once you get up and sit in the seat where you sit high up, we have instructors who are going to ride with them and show them that driving a school bus isn’t that hard – it’s actually very easy. is,” told Dan Radford, a first student safety manager Helena’s KTVH-TV last month. He said that this job has been popular among retirees who want to increase their income and do not mind working in split shifts.
Eastside Charter School, a grade school in Wilmington, Del., is paying families $700 for each child they attend and commute from school. The school’s chief executive officer, Aaron Bass, said that so far, parents of around 180 students have taken advantage of the incentive, and the number is expected to increase to 250. He said the Eastside’s 480 students need transportation, but the school only has half the bus drivers it needs.
“We see this as a time to be innovative,” Mr Bass said. “Find innovation amidst chaos and crisis.”
In Georgia, Savannah-Chatham County Public Schools, which is 114 driverless, has cut bus routes and prioritized busing for students attending their schools, moving families with children to alternative and charter schools as their own. Left to find a way.
The district is offering new and returning drivers $4,000, as well as guaranteeing more working hours. Paul Abbott, executive director of transportation, said Savannah is one of the busiest ports in the country, so there has always been stiff competition in the district for drivers with commercial licenses.