School bus crisis impacts Yonkers Public Schools

Nearly all seven bus companies that work with Yonkers Public Schools don't have enough drivers.

News 12 Staff

Sep 16, 2021, 11:55 AM

Updated 1,117 days ago

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The bus driver shortage that swept the nation has the Hudson Valley scrambling to figure out how to get students to school.
In New York’s fourth largest school district, Yonkers public schools, more than 11,000 out of the of the district’s 27,000 students need a bus. 
As of Wednesday, school officials say all routes are covered.  They've been working with the district's seven bus companies and officials praised the bus companies for their efforts in picking kids up.
Some parents say their kids have waited up to two hours for pickup, while others had to miss school days because there’s no ride. 
The problem is not every parent has access to a car, time off from work to drive their kids to school, or extra cash to dole out on Ubers. 
The school bus driver shortage can be an issue for many families, but for those that have children with disabilities, it can be potentially dangerous. 
One Yonkers parent, whose 15-year-old daughter has had a developmental disability since birth, says her daughter hasn’t been to school in two weeks because there hasn’t been a bus to bring her, and there’s no remote learning option.
And for other children, no school can lead to hunger.  “I have some family suffering from food insecurity and told me I had to get my child to school for breakfast,” says parent and advocate Nnenna Akoma-Ononaji.
At Tuesday’s school board meeting, School Superintendent Dr. Edwin Quezada said the shortage has created significant issues and that he’s working with all seven bus companies to try to come up with a solution. As of Monday evening, 60 children are without a bus route. 
The Yonkers School District says it's on the bus companies to recruit more drivers, but it's unclear how long that will take. If any busing problems persist contact the Yonkers Council of PTA at cgoodstein@ycpta.com or Yonkers Public Schools directly.
Yonkers Schools are not open today for the Yom Kippur holiday.