The statewide bus driver shortage is so bad that a lawmaker has called on Governor Kathy Hochul to call in the National Guard.
Assemblyman Michael Lawler said the last thing families should be worrying about is whether their child will be picked up for school.
The bus driver shortage was happening before the pandemic, which made the issue worse.
The population that drives bus is typically older, and many opted for retirement out of fear of contracting the virus.
A lot of drivers were out of work when school was out and now work for delivery services like FedEx and UPS.
The hardest hit district was Rochester, where high school students needed to start the year remotely due to the lack of transportation.
Officials are scrambling to find ways to hire drivers faster, including asking for a compiled list of CDL drivers currently on unemployment, and asking that some requirements to drive bus be dropped.
FingerLakes1.com is the region’s leading all-digital news publication. The company was founded in 1998 and has been keeping residents informed for more than two decades. Have a lead? Send it to [email protected].