In the Bristol Township School District, the wheels on the bus go round and round — except for routes 24, 30, 65 and 87.
Driver shortages prevented those buses from running on either Friday morning or afternoon, the district announced in a transportation update the night before.
“There are bus routes that cannot run or can only partially run on Sept. 17,” the announcement shared on Facebook read, along with an apology for the inconvenience to families.
"We are doing our best to transport our students with the drivers we have and working through the shortage to the best of our ability," the post continued.
The school district gave a heads up to families on Sept. 12 about the issue, writing that in some cases, drivers are doubling up on their runs to make up for the shortage.
Bussing to its Catholic schools continues despite the setbacks, according to a statement.
Warnings about the impacts of ongoing driver shortages, exacerbated by the pandemic, began coming at the end of last school year from transportation companies and school districts.
Weeks into the new academic year, Pennsylvania School Bus Association Executive Director Ryan Dellinger said that the problem had reached “a crisis point.”
A lack of drivers impacting schools nationwide and across the commonwealth is hitting close to home. The Bucks County Intermediate Unit is also dealing with a shortage of van drivers.
Dan S. - a Newtown Twp resident - sent me an email regarding a lack and/or delay of school bus transportation for his children who attend Holy Ghost, Villa and SKD Regional.
"Being short drivers means buses at every level; high school, middle school, and elementary are tasked with running multiple routes from the same school back to back, pairing routes sequentially that will guarantee the second and/or third routes in the sequence will be late...
"The lack of buses and extreme delays is unacceptable," said the resident who contacted me. "We residents pay huge tax bills to live in this coveted CRSD. I willingly pay in tax dollars and don't utilize the schools by choice for what is best for my children. (read
“Council Rock Approves Preliminary Budget For the 2021-2022 School Year: Assumes a 3% Real Estate Tax Increase.”; https://sco.lt/4zniUK).