School Bus Bungle: How Howard County plans to fix a transportation breakdown impacting students
ELLICOTT CITY -- Howard County Board of Education members and parents pushed for answers about a breakdown in school bus transportation Thursday evening.
A contractor for the public school system, California-based Zum Transportation, temporarily suspended multiple routes citing driver callouts that continue to leave 2,400 students without transportation. There are 20 buses with suspended routes, according to school officials.
The board of education meeting began at 4 p.m. with much of the first few hours dedicated to discussing the school bus debacle.
"My husband is the only driver in our home and cannot miss work," one parent explained to the board. "That is missed money for our family. I fear many upcoming absences this year."
The transportation company is offering bonuses and incentives to retain and hire new drivers. However, some of them need to obtain their commercial driver's license and complete training. So, it's a process, Howard County Public School System Superintendent Michael Martirano said.
"That process continues at an accelerated level as we ensure that we are not compromising the safety and the certification process," Martirano said.
Despite some drivers in the pipeline, Zum Transportation reportedly told school administrative staff that filling the suspended routes would be unlikely by the start of the new school week on Tuesday.
"As a result, we're moving on to plan C, D and E, which we are working with other contractors in our area to access their ability to fulfill additional routes," Martirano said.
While the public school administration works to restore transportation to some students, another focus is on addressing delays in getting children to and from campus.
This school year, Howard County implemented adjusted start times, which occur in three tiers.
If a bus driver falls behind on a route, it has a cascading effect. Therefore, changes may need to be made to bell times and pick-up schedules, according to Chief Administrative Officer Jahantab Siddiqui.
"So, still maintaining the tiers, still maintaining the start of schools later initiative but looking to see where we may be able to add some additional slack in the line so that we don't see permanent delays," Siddiqui said.
Administrative staff have asked Zum Transportation officials to have their bus drivers practice routes this weekend and prepare for the coming school week.
Additionally, he superintendent intends to have an "objective audit' conducted to identify errors that could have been mitigated but were not.