Share this Story : Ottawa student transportation authority still short by 13 school bus drivers Copy Link Email X Reddit Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Breadcrumb Trail Links News Local News Ottawa student transportation authority still short by 13 school bus drivers The shortage affects about 57 transportation runs, less than one per cent of the total number of runs for the OSTA. Author of the article: Joanne Laucius Published Aug 22, 2024 • Last updated 5 minutes ago • 2 minute read Join the conversation You can save this article by registering for free here . Or sign-in if you have an account.
On Aug. 14, the Ottawa Student Transportation Authority still needed 28 drivers for this fall, but as of Wednesday that number was down to 13, affecting 57 runs, mostly in the city's west end. Photo by Ashley Fraser / Postmedia Article content The consortium responsible for school buses in Ottawa’s two English-language school boards still needs 13 more drivers to cover routes this September.
The shortage affects about 57 transportation runs, or less than one per cent of the total number of runs, according to a message emailed to parents by the Ottawa Student Transportation Authority on Wednesday. The message urged parents continue to monitor the OSTA website for updates to the long-term cancellations list. Advertisement 2 Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.
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Get email updates from your favourite authors. Sign In or Create an Account Email Address Continue or View more offers If you are a Home delivery print subscriber, unlimited online access is included in your subscription. Activate your Online Access Now Article content Late last summer, the families of 7,500 students learned only days before school started that their children’s buses had been cancelled.
At that time, OSTA was short by about 130 drivers and had not been able to come to a contractual agreement with one of its bus operators. The situation left families scrambling to get children to school themselves or making other transportation arrangements. By early last October, OSTA still needed 71 drivers.
The shortage of drivers at this point is shrinking, according to recent figures from OSTA. On Aug. 14, it needed 28 drivers, affecting about 112 school bus runs.
About three-quarters of the affected runs listed Wednesday were in Ottawa’s west end. “Information about long-term cancellations is subject to change,” said Wednesday’s notice to families from Cindy Owens, OSTA’s interim general manager. “Cancelled services may be reinstated by the start of the school year.
Information about cancellations is intended to give parents and guardians as much notice as possible so they can plan alternative arrangements in the worst-case scenario.” Advertisement 3 Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content Another update is to be posted next week.
OSTA manages and co-ordinates bus transportation for students at the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board (OCDSB) and the Ottawa Catholic School Board (OCSB). Since last summer, some Grade 7-12 students have been transitioned to public transit. Parents and guardians may request single-ride vouchers to take public transit with their children.
According to Ontario’s Ministry of Education, cancellations in Ottawa last September represented more than 70 per cent of the total for the entire province. An independent review of last year’s shortages by Deloitte LLP, commissioned by the Ministry of Education and released earlier this month, concluded that changing bell times would allow for additional bus runs and allow buses to drive longer distances and pick up more students. However, if there are changes to bell times, they won’t take place in the coming school year as any changes exceeding 10 minutes require school board approval.
Our website is your destination for up-to-the-minute news, so make sure to bookmark our homepage and sign up for our newsletters so we can keep you informed. Recommended from Editorial Ottawa school bus authority short dozens of drivers again as return to classes looms Changing Ottawa's school start times will help fix bus shortage: report Article content Share this article in your social network Share this Story : Ottawa student transportation authority still short by 13 school bus drivers Copy Link Email X Reddit Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Comments You must be logged in to join the discussion or read more comments. Create an Account Sign in Join the Conversation Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion.
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