With classes starting next week for hundreds of thousands of Iowa students, many school districts statewide are facing a common problem — a lack of school bus drivers.
In northwest Iowa, Le Mars Community Schools Superintendent Steven Webner says they’ve tried to prepare for the inevitable. “There is a major bus driver shortage for schools and it’s not just a Le Mars issue, it’s not just an Iowa issue, it’s a nationwide issue,” Webner says. “We have not pinpointed why, exactly, but we have seen this coming for quite some time and it’s finally catching up with Le Mars.”
Webner says this bus driver shortage was anticipated so they’ve tried to get ahead of the problem. “We recommended to the board that when we purchase buses, we buy bigger buses, so we can put more kids in there with fewer drivers,” he says. “Last year, we had to dissolve a route because we could not find a driver, and this coming year, it looks like we may be dissolving two additional routes due to a lack of drivers.”
Bigger buses carrying more kids means longer rides both in the morning and the afternoon, and more time behind the wheel for the scarce number of drivers.
“Schools are trying to be creative in what they’re doing to find and attract drivers, but it doesn’t sound like it’s working in too many places,” Webner says, “so it’s gonna be a difficult situation if things don’t get turned around.” An online report shows a wide range of school bus driver salaries in Iowa, with some making as little as $16,500 dollars a year, while others may be bringing in up to $41,000.
(By John Slegers, KLEM, Le Mars)