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w w w .insidehalton.com | OAKVILLE BEAVER | Friday, A ugust 2 5 , 2 0 1 7 | 8 School year to begin with shortage of school bus drivers by Kathy Yanchus Metroland West Media Group As the first day of school approaches, both Halton boards are facing a school bus driver shortage, primarily in Oakville and to a less er degree, in Burlington. "In Burlington at this time there is almost a driver for every route; there are maybe a couple of routes that don't have drivers," said Karen Lacroix, general manager for Halton Student Transportation Services (HSTS). "Oakville is our biggest challenge and it appears that the driver pool in Oakville, in particular, seems to have dried up. We don't know why; I'm at a loss to explain." The shortage of drivers, which will not af fect Milton or Halton Hills, did not come as a surprise to Lacroix. "W hat' s happening is it is getting worse. There' s been a driver shortage in the industry, if you will, for quite a few years. It' s an industry problem. It has been a challenge for the last number of years and it seems to be getting worse. Its' across North America actually, even in the States it' s a big problem there as well." Often it' s a matter of drivers seeking full time employment outside the industry or with municipal transit systems, over the re quired split shifts as a school bus driver. But there is also a wage component and the re good three weeks, at least, to train a potential new hire. The training is quite extensive that a new driver has to go through. It all takes time. There are some (drivers) waiting in the wings, but certainly not enough to fill the number of routes open at this time," she said. Be prepared in case of delays Parents are encouraged to sign up for de lays and cancellation notifications on the HSTS website before the start of school, said Lacroix. Bus delays will be posted on its web site starting on the first day of school (Sept 5). "If any bus is running late, the bus compa nies will be posting it as soon as they're made aware and parents will receive an email as long as they're signed up." Six bus companies provide 4 3 4 buses to both school boards. "We are aware of the impact any potential driver shortage could have on families and we appreciate everyone' s patience and un derstanding as the local bus operators work through this challenging time period," said Lacroix. Interested applicants are asked to contact First Student Canada at 9 0 5 -3 3 5 -7 0 1 0 or Attridge Transportation Inc. at 9 0 5 -3 33-4047. To view job postings for school bus driv ers, or sign up for cancellation/delay notifica tions, visit the HSTS website at haltonbus.ca. There is a sch o o l b u s driver sho rta g e in H alton, m a in ly in Oakville. | Metroland file photo sponsibility component, she said. To minimize the impact on students, HSTS is working with both the Halton Catholic District School Board and the Halton District School Board to optimize bus routes and re duce the number of buses on the road for the upcoming school year. They are also looking at the possibility of consolidating routes even further, said Lacroix. "As schools open up, there might be stu dents who are assumed to be returning but aren't returning and so we're looking at doing a final review as well in that regard." HSTS and the boards are also trying to as sist school bus operators in their recruitment efforts by posting and/or tweeting about bus company open houses and job postings. "I don't want to make this sound worse than it is. There are drivers in training and there are applicants coming in, but it takes a - fn J -- * 1 3 BAC K TO SCHOOL B R A N D S A L L IN STOCK! i AyA KITCHENS OF OAKVILLE 1195 NORTH SERVICE ROAD WEST KITCH EN S O F O A K V IL L E IichK i HOURS: s [^ B e m il l e s h o e s iK £ l[IK 7 B u r l in g t o n u 1 SHOESTORE G I e I © Q M IS 2394 FAIRVIEW STREET, BURLINGTON 9 0 5 - 6 3 2 - 9 6 8 8 w w w .fa c to r y s h o e o u tle t.c a B O Monday-Frlday 9am to 9pm S atu rd a y 9am t o 6pm Sunday 10am to 6pm AYAOAKVILLE.COM