EDUCATION

So. Maine schools struggle with bus driver shortage

Ledgemere offers $1,500 sign-on bonus

Alexander LaCasse alacasse@seacoastonline.com
Kittery School Superintendent Eric Waddell said the district has all its routes covered but that the school would struggle in the event one of the regular drivers missed work for an extended period of time. [Alexander LaCasse photo]

KITTERY, Maine — The shortage of bus drivers has not hit Kittery and York nearly as hard as other districts in the state, even though York is still one bus short.

Brian Trafton, terminal manager for Ledgemere Transportation, the contracted school bus provider responsible for Portsmouth, Kittery, York, Berwick Academy and Wells, said the company and its parent company Student Transportation Inc., have the staff to only cover nine of 10 of York’s bus routes, but said York only had nine buses last year as well.

In response to the shortage, Trafton said the company was offering $1,500 sign-on bonus and will pay for the driver’s training and pay a “competitive” wage. He also said the company was offering a $1,500 bonus to any of its drivers who recruit a driver.

“Being a bus short makes for longer bus rides and it’s put a lot of a lot of strain on our drivers to be as early and consistent as possible,” Trafton said. “It’s really a national problem, it's hit New Hampshire hard as well. We’re luckier than some because some districts have had to delay the start of school.”

York schools’ director of finance and operations Jim Amoroso said the district was working with Ledgemere to fill the vacant driver position as soon as possible.

“(We) started with nine buses this year and we have 10 budgeted. That’s our goal. Unfortunately, Ledgemere doesn’t have drivers,” Amoroso said at a Sept. 6 School Committee meeting. (Ledgemere has) three drivers in York who drive for Kittery, York and Berwick Academy. It’s a tough job. With employment the way it is, (they’re) having a hard time filling the positions.”

Kittery School Superintendent Eric Waddell said the district has all its routes covered under its current contract with Ledgemere. However, he said the school would face transportation strains if one of the regular drivers missed work for an extended period of time.

“I’ve always said a bus is a playground on wheels and it’s not an easy job to supervise other people's children and transport them safely to and from school,” Waddell said. “The drivers we have are very strong and very skilled, my feeling is we’re always one sick driver away from having a shortage and that’s not a problem exclusive to Kittery.”

Waddell said although all of Kittery’s school bus routes are covered, road construction around town has led to some additional tardiness for students. He also cited one route in particular for students living in the northwest end of town and attending Horace Mitchell School in Kittery Point ride the bus in excess of 50 minutes each way from pick-up to drop-off.

“When a student gets on the bus in the morning, that is their first experience with our schools and we want that to be a positive and friendly experience,” Waddell said. “For the younger students we would prefer to not have them on the bus that long.”

In SAD 35, encompassing Eliot and South Berwick, the school year began with concerns that a handful of the district’s buses were overcrowded, according to Chief Operations Officer John Caverly. He said after staff members in the district’s transportation department spoke with each driver they determined none of the buses was overcrowded.

“We have a couple longer routes than others,” Caverly said. He said the district strives to keep the number of students riding a given bus at less than 65 but acknowledged the buses are designed to hold 72 middle and high school students sitting three to a seat every-other row or 81 elementary school students sitting three to a seat.

“Sixty-five would be a big number for us and we don’t want to have that happen, but right now every bus is under that threshold,” he said.

Caverly said the district owns its school bus fleet and the district hires its own drivers and has them work close to full-time with most working 35 to 40 hours a week. He said the district is not facing a shortage of substitute bus drivers.

“We have a system including one full-time substitute," he said. "They’re not just picking kids up, dropping them off at school and coming back to take them home. They’re taking teams to games and taking students to field trips. We try to do things the right way and take care of all our employees.”

In contrast, Ledgemere hires part-time drivers who typically work 25 to 30 hours a week and also transport athletic teams and students on field trips, according to Trafton. He said the company is, “working on” being able to provide benefits to drivers who are usually stay-at-home parents or retirees.

“We’re not covering huge municipalities so it’s hard to offer benefits at that price range,” Trafton said. “I think it has to do with shifting demographics because the stay-at-home parent is probably looking for a full-time job today.”

Reporter Deborah McDermott contributed to this story.