ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — The Orange County Public School system is hoping many parents might opt to drive their kids themselves and avoid using the bus system on the first day of school on Thursday.
The night before the first day of school, OCPS sent an automated call to parents warning them of bus delays.
What You Need To Know
- OCPS is facing a bus driver shortage, which is an issue plaguing school districts nationwide
- The district is "doubling back" routes for high schoolers in an effort to spread resources
- According to officials, the district needs to hire about 100 more drivers to fill vacancies and comfortably cover staff absences
An estimated 58,000 students in Orange County will hop on a big yellow bus this school year. Though, like many districts, Orange County is having difficulties coordinating how they'll get them to class.
Bus driver shortages and transportation woes have been a difficulty ever since schools went remote during the COVID-19 pandemic. When schools opened doors again, many bus drivers never returned to their positions. According to the ADP Research Institute, 13% fewer bus drivers wemt back to work in September 2021 compared to 2019.
Data indicates more than half of bus drivers are above the age of 55. The ADP Research Institute said it believes many drivers left the workforce in search of retirement following 2020.
Now, many school districts have had to get creative in order to patch holes in their less-than-ideal transportation situation.
Due to the number of students who need rides, and the few warm bodies available to put behind the wheel, OCPS is working off a "double back" system. Bus drivers will pick up one round of high school students, drop them off, and then return back on the road to pick up another round of high schoolers.
"This is not the most ideal situation, but it's the best process we have currently to get students to and from school on time," said Bill Wen, senior director of transportation at OCPS.
Students in the first drop-off round will arrive at school early and will have the cafeteria available for them to work on homework and eat breakfast.
OCPS officials said they are offering incentives to new bus drivers as they are currently hoping to fill about 100 positions in their transportation department.
In the meantime, parents are encouraged to drive their kids to school if possible. Ideally, parents should consider carpooling with other families in order to reduce traffic at the drop-off line.
Celeste Springer is the education beat reporter for Spectrum News 13. If you have a story idea or concern, you can email her at celeste.springer@charter.com.