School districts across Illinois grapple with a lack of school bus
drivers
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[September 02, 2021]
By Kevin Bessler
(The Center Square) – As the school year
gets underway, signs that read “school bus drivers wanted” are a
familiar sight throughout Illinois. The nationwide driver shortage is
being felt in the Land of Lincoln.
Numerous districts are forced to tier bus schedules, with buses making
multiple rounds to prevent overcrowding.
“Due to the driver shortage, we had to change from two-tier schedule to
three-tier schedule to use drivers on multiple routes,” Peoria
Superintendent of Schools Sharon Desmoulin-Kherat said.
Parents in the Granite City area are being asked to find their children
other means of transportation to school because of the driver shortage.
This week, the district is providing bus transportation only for
students in kindergarten through 4th grades, according to a letter on
the district's website.
All 5th through 12th grade students without a ride to school will be
granted an excused absence and will be allowed to make up any work.
School officials are turning to mass transit for help. The district
announced Madison County Transit will offer free bus rides to students
through the end of the month. The three Granite City schools affected by
the school bus driver shortage are along MCT’s current routes.
Some bus company officials attribute the shortage to mass retirements
during the pandemic. Others point to Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s vaccination
mandate for school employees. Scores of Chicago school bus drivers have
reportedly quit because of the mandate.
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East Aurora Superintendent of Schools Jennifer
Norrell told the Chicago Tribune that some students are missing
classes while others are sitting on buses for hours during hot
weather due to the problem.
“It was a catastrophe,” she said. “We didn’t plan to have all those
children and they sat there for hours hungry and exhausted."
Decatur Public Schools are also dealing with a school bus driver
shortage.
“We continue to deal with a critical shortage of bus drivers due to
COVID. We know the late buses, and in some cases missing bus routes,
are exceptionally frustrating, not only for parents but for our
school as well,” the district said in a statement.
The Peoria school district has its own bus service, and
Desmoulin-Kherat says they are offering more money to attract
drivers.
“What we’ve done is offer a new driver sign-on bonus, which is a
$500 sign-on bonus,” she said. “We already attracted seven new
drivers and they are in training.” She added they are actively
advertising for new driver as well.
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