LA PORTE, Texas – It is back to school this Tuesday after the holiday weekend for students in La Porte ISD. Many parents had to drop off their children because of district wide bus driver shortages.
“We got the call last night, ‘Hey, there’s gonna be delays tomorrow due to COVID reasons,’ and it’s like could there be anything else that happens because of COVID?” said parent Stephanie Duarte.
School officials sent out a message to parents Monday night letting them know there will be delays this week. They asked parents to drop off and pick up their children if at all possible.
“A lot of people just can’t. A lot of people, everybody has to work and I feel for them, I really do,” said parent Robbie Nelson.
In a new national survey, about half of student transportation coordinators said their school bus driver shortages were severe or desperate.
“They need people everywhere. Teachers, personally, I would rather not have kids on the bus because of COVID,” said Nelson.
La Porte ISD tells KPRC 2 News there is a shortage due to various reasons related to COVID-19. They sent this statement:
“Tuesday morning’s bus routes went well, actually better than we had expected.
Like most school districts in the greater Houston area, the La Porte Independent School District is experiencing a bus driver shortage due to various reasons related to COVID-19.
We are working through these challenges, and we appreciate the patience and grace from our parents and stakeholders, who have given us one hundred percent support as we work through these challenges. The health and safety of our students and staff are always our number one priority. We continue to demonstrate our commitment to excellence and respect for our stakeholders. We are in constant communication with our parents and always striving to do what is best for the students that attend our schools.”
“It’s just too much. It’s in everything, it’s affecting everything that we do every single day and it’s getting to be too much,” said Duarte.
The school district’s transportation services is working to alleviate the delays, but school officials would not elaborate on how they would do that.
The school district is looking to hire more bus drivers, and drivers can make up to $26 an hour once they are hired. Click here for more information.