News Summary
The Mat-Su Borough School District has canceled dozens of bus routes due to a significant shortage of bus drivers. The cancellations mainly occurred over two days and have raised concerns among parents regarding transportation logistics. The shortage is attributed to staffing issues with the district’s transportation provider, Durham School Services, resulting in last-minute notifications for families. With less than 4% of routes affected, parents like Jorge Osorio struggle to adapt their work schedules. Meanwhile, the Anchorage School District experiences similar challenges and is implementing measures to attract new drivers.
Wasilla, Alaska – The Mat-Su Borough School District has faced significant disruption due to the cancellation of dozens of school bus routes, attributed to a critical shortage of bus drivers. Cancellations occurred over two days, Thursday and Friday, leading to the suspension of 42 bus route segments during that period. This crisis has raised concerns among parents and affected the school transportation logistics for families in the area.
The Mat-Su Borough School District, which operates a total of 550 bus route segments daily, experienced this shortage as a result of staffing issues with Durham School Services, the district’s contracted transportation provider since 2022. A district representative noted that the cancellations were primarily due to driver absences, with insufficient standby drivers available to cover those routes. Parents have expressed their frustration regarding late notifications of route cancellations, often receiving alerts just a few hours before pick-up times, complicating their ability to arrange transportation for their children.
The recent cancellations affected less than 4% of the district’s bus routes, but the impact has been felt widely among families. For many parents, including Jorge Osorio, the last-minute changes make it challenging to coordinate work schedules and ensure their children arrive at school on time. Fortunately, there were no further cancellations reported on the following Monday, indicating a potential stabilization in the situation.
Durham School Services has cited various reasons behind the staffing shortage, including leaves of absence and unexpected call-offs from drivers. The district anticipates that the issue may improve soon as some drivers begin returning to work and additional drivers complete their training processes.
This isn’t the first instance the Mat-Su Borough School District has had to deal with a bus driver shortage. In August 2022, the issue led to the cancellation of regular education routes at the commencement of the school year, showing a troubling trend in transportation capacity. Similarly, the Anchorage School District also faced a driver shortage at the beginning of that academic year, which forced them to implement a rotating bus schedule affecting many of their families.
The existing contract with Durham School Services remains in effect until June 30, 2032. While the district works towards resolving its current bus driver shortage, the Alaska National Guard confirmed that it could not assist in addressing this issue due to legal restrictions preventing activation for this purpose. Concurrently, the Anchorage School District is seeking alternative solutions to mitigate transportation challenges for families, which currently sees a significant gap in available drivers compared to the number of students eligible for service.
Under its rotating bus service model, the Anchorage School District has only enough drivers to serve approximately 7,000 of the 20,000 eligible students simultaneously. To counterbalance the shortage, general education bus routes are divided into three cohorts, providing services for three weeks with a subsequent six-week suspension of services. Special education routes and transportation for students living within 1.5 miles from their schools remain unaffected by the changes, but parents are still encouraged to seek alternative transportation for their children, such as carpooling or personal drives.
The Anchorage School District has implemented a financial incentive package aimed at attracting new drivers, including a $2,500 bonus for new hires and an additional $500 for bus attendants during the first semester. However, the overall driver shortage remains acute, and the situation may take time to resolve fully. As of now, the Anchorage School District also has 375 open positions across various departments beyond transportation, highlighting broader staffing challenges within the district.
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Additional Resources
- Alaska’s News Source: Driver Shortage Hits Mat-Su Students
- Wikipedia: School Bus
- Anchorage Daily News: National Guard Unable to Help with Bus Driver Shortage
- Google Search: School Bus Driver Shortage
- School Transportation News: Driver Shortages in Alaska
- Google Scholar: School Bus Driver Shortage
- Anchorage Daily News: ASD Bus Routes Suspension
- Encyclopedia Britannica: School Transportation
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