Pennsylvania Urges CDL Holders to Become School Bus Drivers

October 18, 2021

The beginning of this school year has negatively impacted many school districts like no other. Pennsylvania school districts have responded by offering signing bonuses and other incentives to attract commercial drivers license holders.

The Pennsylvania Department of Education said it anticipates filling the school bus driver’s seats with licensed drivers, amid school bus driver shortage.

The official Pennsylvania Department of Education website hosts a form to hire individuals that currently have a CDL and are interested in working for school districts as bus drivers.

A link on the PennDOT website states, “As a current Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) holder, you may be qualified to serve your community as a school bus driver this school year. If you are seeking work, or are interested in supplemental employment, please know that many school entities are offering signing bonuses, retention bonuses, and other incentives to attract drivers.”

The form provides an option for CDL holders to indicate if they are interested in serving as a school bus driver this year or not. If an individual selects yes, their information will be shared with school districts in their community.

Meanwhile, a local news station reported that many people across the state have received letters encouraging applications for part-time work as school bus drivers. People who have a CLD are encouraged to get involved with school bus driving. If they do not have experience, there is a $500 sign-on bonus and paid training. If they are experienced bus drivers, there is a $2,500 sign-on bonus.

The letter will be coming from PennDOT and will be directly addressed to those individuals that own a CDL. According to a news release, approximately 375,000 CDL holders in the state will be contacted, in attempt to recruit more bus drivers.

For those that are interested in becoming a school bus driver but do not own a CDL, the state will make adjustments to provide one for them, the article added.