CITRUS COUNTY, Fla. — Some parents in Citrus County say school bus driver shortages are posing a major problem for them, with many routes being cut indefinitely because there are no drivers available.

What You Need To Know

  • Parents concerned over lack of bus drivers, delays and routes being cut

  • Sean O’Brien has a daughter in middle school and said they’ve had issues with her bus throughout this school year

  • School district says it's doing what it can, including having administrators transport students

One father who spoke to Spectrum News said that while he understands the shortage, something needs to be done.

Sean O’Brien has a daughter in middle school and said they’ve had issues with her bus throughout this school year.

Last Friday, she came home and told him she no longer had a bus ride to school because there was no driver, and no one to fill in.

“I have to tell my job that I’m going to be late, I have to tell them I’m going to have to leave early to go pick her up, it’s getting ridiculous,” Sean O’Brien said. “I’m going to lose my job and making a living to get her to school. I want her to go to school but I can’t afford to.”

The Citrus County School District said there are no other drivers available for that route and that while it will do its best to offer alternatives, it's still trying to tackle the bus driver shortage countywide.

Nataleigh O’Brien said she has missed a lot of school because of the problem.

“My grades have been going down because I haven’t found a way to get to school yet, and I have a lot of missing assignments,” she said.

Sean O’Brien said this isn’t just a problem for students on her bus, either, saying it is a district-wide problem. His friend, Brian Perine, lives in Crystal River, and his kids also have no bus to school, only for the trip home.

They say they understand the district is having a hard filling those spots but that something needs to give.

“I understand getting more bus drivers, you have to figure out how, well, the pay needs to be helpful,” Perine said. “And from what I’ve heard, even from a bus driver last year who I talked to personally, a lot of the issues they’re having is kids who just don’t want to listen to the bus driver. And they want to quit, they don’t want to deal with it.”

The district has gone so far as having administrators driving vans to cover routes and get students to and from school safely.