More school bus drivers wanted as classes resume at Milwaukee Public Schools

 

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- Thousands of Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS) students took a bus to their first day of school Monday, Aug. 14, on hundreds of different routes.

Lamers Bus Lines and First Student, two busy school bus companies that partner with MPS, told CBS 58, the first day of school went smoothly but they would like to add more bus drivers as soon as possible.

"We have every route covered, we're not leaving people standing anywhere," said Dean Brown, a manager at Lamers Bus Lines.

Brown said the transportation industry hasn't recovered from major shortages that started in 2020.

School bus providers in Milwaukee are adjusting their route sizes to adequately serve students, based on their number of drivers.

"The adjustments are done before school starts. You don't want to take on 150 or 200 routes, if you've got 80 drivers to do it," Brown said.

Lamers has around 70 bus drivers covering MPS routes, and they hope to add about 20 more drivers to have a full staff.

Brown said on occasion, Lamers has their charter bus drivers and other staff step in to cover school routes.

Brown said there has recently been a rise in wages for school bus drivers, and the schedules are flexible, but there's still a nationwide shortage.

Meanwhile, First Student bus company had about 90 buses on routes Monday, especially on Milwaukee's north side.

While they also have drivers covering all routes, manager Jason Janczak said hiring more will help lighten the load on their current staff, but new-hires have to be the right people to keep kids safe.

"We want quality drivers, and that's what it comes down to, is not only can they meet the requirements, but they're of high moral character," Janczak said.

Both Lamers and First Student are accepting applications for interested school bus drivers.

Applicants need a good driving record, and both companies can train and CDL certify in-house.