CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Va. -- Chesterfield school leaders are holding another bus driver job fair this week while the district is still looking to fill about 100 driver positions.
Some parents said since the start of school a few weeks ago, things have only gotten worse.
Lynn Lewis has two sons who attend Jacobs Road Elementary. She said their bus is consistently 40 minutes late, which has her sons missing out on school breakfast and afternoon activities.
"We have never been once on time, at all," Lewis explained.
Lewis said she had to call the school a few days ago around 8 a.m. to tell them her sons' bus hadn’t shown up to pick them up. She called the front office to ask that they not mark them tardy since the school day starts at 7:45 a.m.
"They [the school] had no idea that that bus was running late either," she noted. "I mean, it's extremely frustrating."
While Lewis said she knows the district is stretched thin, she added that they used to communicate with families when the buses are late but claimed they aren’t doing that anymore.
“When they're not showing up when they're supposed to be I mean, we both start going into frantic mode," she explained. "I was one of those parents who got their kid a GizmoWatch, so I can track where he is. Because like I said, I can't rely on CCPS transportation to tell me anything."
We received a statement from Chesterfield Schools spokesman Shawn Smith stating, “Transportation staff communicate to parents about late bus routes as the information is received from the field. Typically, bus drivers communicate an estimated time frame for how late the bus will be, and transportation staff will then pass the information along to parents."
However, Lewis said she hasn't received an email or phone call all year.
The district will hold a bus driver job fair on Thursday, Sept. 30 at Manchester Middle School from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. New drivers have a starting pay of $20.21 per hour.
