Student Transportation of America highlighted that the company is working “around the clock” to solve transportation delays for school bus riders who attend Omaha Public Schools, adding that the majority of routes are and have been on time despite a shortage of drivers.
The issues arose, said STA, from dozens of new school bus routes added by the district earlier this month, shortly before the school year began on Aug. 17, which an STA spokeswoman said were “higher than anticipated.” Meanwhile, a school district attorney told the Omaha World-Herald that STA received notification of the new routes in a “verbal meeting” this past spring.
Compounding matters, STA said that it, along with the rest of the nation, is experiencing a shortage of qualified bus drivers.
Local media reports have decried widespread delays as a result. STA representative Lynette Viviani said that’s not the case, but added that school bus operations “are complicated and require efficient logistics.”
“We have improved our route coverage every day since Day One of the school year, and service will continue to improve as we get folks out of training,” she said. “Ninety-five percent of routes will be covered as of (Thursday), and with the help of the district staff we will be fully complemented shortly. Until all new drivers are certified, however, a small number of STA drivers will do double duty, which will change pick-up and drop-off times for some OPS families.”
The contractor serviced 419 routes last school year. Viviani reported that the current number of routes, finalized by the district just last week, stands at 471 routes, an 11-percent increase from last year. She added that the company has consolidated 38 routes to make them more efficient and cost-effective, with those changes expected to be implemented Thursday morning.
“The vast majority of our routes are running on time. However, we will not rest until all issues are resolved,” she said, adding that the company believes that further efficiencies can be made.
Meanwhile, Viviani said 20 new school bus drivers are awaiting final testing for their Commercial Driver’s License over the next 10 days. Another 20 driver applicants are in the process of receiving their 46 hours of classroom and behind-the-wheel instruction, and 15 new candidates applied on Tuesday.
“Recruiting, hiring and training for school bus drivers is a year-round process,”” she said. “There is a shortage of qualified school bus drivers nationally and in our area in particular. Safety is always our number one concern.”
The original Omaha-STA contract runs through next August, with an option for two additional years.
