NORFOLK, Va. — Some Norfolk parents are frustrated after their children's bus was hours late dropping them off at home earlier this week.
“He loves school but is afraid about the bus,” explained parent Becky Davis.
Davis has a kindergartener at Ghent School. She said bus issues are creating a headache for her and her husband.
“My son didn't get home until 5:30, which is a two-and-a-half-hour bus ride,” she said.
Davis said that the latest instance happened on Tuesday, but the bus has also been over an hour late two other times earlier this year.
She said, “It was more of, like, 'OK, what are the thoughts that are going through my mind? Where's my child?'”
Davis went as far as buying a GPS tracker to put in her son’s backpack. When she tracked it the other day, she said it showed her son was in East Beach, out in Ocean View.
“It’s the only way to figure out how to find our kids because the bus app was not working,” Davis said, “If the buses are full and they don’t have enough buses, don’t just stick my kid on any bus.”
Norfolk Public School leaders released a statement that read:
In this case, the regular driver was out and a substitute covered the student’s run as well as her own assigned run for Academy of Discovery at Lakewood. The ADL route starts in East Beach. The driver dropped off students on her regularly scheduled route, and then continued driving to drop off students on the additional route.
Every day, we do everything we can to ensure students arrive home safely and as quickly as possible.
Again, Norfolk Public Schools faces the same bus driver staffing shortage that divisions across the state and country are struggling with. We have offered incentives for bus drivers including:
- Receive $250 Bonus when you obtain your CDL Licensure or provide documentation that you have already earned it.
- Receive $250 first-time new hire bonus.
- Receive up to $480 for completing all required CDL training and obtaining your Class B CDL with P & S Endorsements. In addition, you will be reimbursed the $20 fee for the background check.
We are hosting a job fair for positions including bus drivers, school nutrition assistants, security officers and clerical workers on October 30. Please join us.
In a separate statement, a spokesperson for Norfolk Public Schools also said:
Norfolk faces the same driver staffing shortages that have affected school divisions around the state and the country. We have adjusted school schedules and bus routes. The division is short approximately 95 drivers, and our current workforce is driving two to three runs for pickups and drop-offs each day.
Earlier this year, we advised parents to expect delays in bus pickup and drop-off times. Ghent School offers division-wide enrollment, which means students from all over the city may attend. That means some of the students at Ghent are much further from home than they would be if enrolled at their neighborhood school.
NPS is currently offering hiring incentives and paid training for bus drivers. Head to npsk12.com and click on Transportation to view our school bus incentive package.
Davis said, “If it's a problem where there are not enough buses and my child is still at school, because of that maybe it will give me a chance to, I could just run and get him by that time if that's the case.”
She hopes the problem is resolved soon, so her son doesn't have to sit on a school bus for hours.