BPS Families and Staff,
As you may have heard, school districts across the state and nation are experiencing a severe shortage of bus drivers, particularly in the post-COVID economy. Simultaneously, our district continues to experience unprecedented growth (+1,200 students in two years) which has necessitated adding even more bus routes to meet our needs. The district continues to explore methods to increase our staffing, yet we are in direct competition with surrounding districts for a very small number of qualified drivers.
As of today we are short five bus drivers from what the district needs to complete all of our scheduled routes. This, combined with the lack of available substitute drivers, has prompted the need for a modified routing schedule over the next few weeks as we work to bring additional drivers on board.
We have developed a schedule that equitably shares the impact of these shortages. Similar to the “rolling blackout” strategy used by power companies during peak energy use, this schedule will ask families to make alternate arrangements for transportation for a maximum of five school days between now and the end of the semester.
The schedule below eliminates one bus route for each elementary/intermediate site each day and will run through December 16th. Buses listed for each day will NOT run any routes, elementary/intermediate or secondary. The district will send a daily text to bus riders specific to the bus number reminding families their bus will not run on the following day. At this time, we anticipate a return to our normal transportation schedule on January 3rd, however, the district is engaging in a constant effort to recruit, hire, and train new drivers. In the case we are able to fill the necessary amount of vacancies, we may be able to return to our regular schedule at an earlier date.
The district understands the challenges this temporary plan creates for our families and greatly regrets the inconvenience. We appreciate your patience and understanding as we work to bring on additional drivers.
Should you wish to share this employment opportunity with friends and family, our openings can be found here.
Respectfully,
Rob Miller
Superintendent