LAKE TRAVIS, Texas (KEYE) — School districts returning from summer break are struggling to hire bus drivers. This has some districts considering changes to bus routes and deciding which students get transportation.
Current bus drivers are preparing to take on a bigger workload as the school year begins.
It's the infectious joy that Gaudion brings to Lake Travis ISD students that lift them up every day before and after school.
I really enjoy particularly the little ones. They keep it real, and they can take you out of the worst moments," Gaudion said.Driving a big yellow bus is like driving a car to him. He's been doing it for the last 15 years and is one of the most tenured bus drivers at Lake Travis ISD.
He left his career after becoming burnt out like many people are experiencing during the pandemic right now.
"I was going to do this until I figured out what I wanted to do when I grew up and have been here ever since," he said.
Lake Travis ISD is making changes to its bus services due to the shortages. Any student living inside a two-mile radius will not be provided transportation by the district. Bus service will be provided on a rotating one-week on and one-week off schedule for students living outside the two-mile radius.
"It's frustrating for them because they're having to make changes to their routines. It's something new for all of us to adjust to," Assistant Superintendent of Operations Brad Bailey said.Families are now leaning on each other during this time to carpool students back and forth to school.
"We understand that part is hard and we're very apologetic for that. It's not something we want to do but it's just the necessity that we have to do based on the current driver situation," he said.
This is a challenging time for the district, Bailey said, but it's nothing new to Central Texas school districts. According to Bailey, the department is budgeted for 85 bus drivers.
Pre-pandemic there were 60 bus drivers, but now, the district only has around 20 drivers. 30-40 bus drivers are needed to function near full capacity.
"We've had just a couple here and there come in but we really haven't had over an abundance of applicants," Bailey said.
The starting pay for a bus driver at Lago Vista ISD is $19.60 per hour and there is a $3,000 signing bonus for qualified applicants with prior experience.
The pay has increased, but there still aren't a lot of bites for the job, which is increasing the workload for Lake Travis ISD bus drivers.
"It's a big change because now we're learning two routes and you got twice as many children, parents, and stuff to deal with," Gaudion said.
Once more bus driver positions are filled parents can expect to see a change to the transportation services that are currently being offered.
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