Bus driver shortage: Hamilton Schools warn of ‘considerable’ student drop-off delays

In a message to parents and guardians sent Wednesday, the Hamilton City Schools said it is seeing a shortage of school bus drivers and warned parents afternoon bus routes may be delayed.

“We anticipate considerable delays in drop-off times and apologize for the inconvenience this may cause,” the notice said. “The issue will primarily affect our elementary school bus routes.”

The district’s message also said it would ensure all students are “delivered home safely.”

Hamilton Schools is hiring bus drivers. Click here for information on applying.

Elsewhere in the region, Northeastern Local Schools in Springfield experienced a similar shortage, but that one led to the district completely closing on Wednesday.

“Today’s staffing shortage affects our transportation department for various reasons,” said the district’s communications representative, Steffanie Stratton.

A post on the district’s website said transportation was still provided for Global Impact STEM Academy, Catholic Central and Springfield-Clark Career Technology Center (CTC) students.

Northeastern High School students who attend those schools had to be at the campus by 7:10 a.m. Wednesday and needed to be picked up at 3:15 p.m. in the afternoon.

Transportation for the Kenton Ridge High School students in those schools ran normally.

Bus driver shortages are a national problem, according to Axios. It reported a survey from HopSkipDrive at the beginning of the current school year revealed 88% of districts have constrained transportation because of a lack of bus drivers.

A whopping 67% of respondents to the survey said recruiting new drivers is the biggest woe, followed by bus driver pay and retirements.

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