Bus Driver Shortage & Rethinking Transportation
The Situation
Since 2017, BVSD has experienced a steady decline in the number of bus drivers employed by the district. Competition from delivery services such as Amazon and UPS coupled with the high cost of living in the area are driving the decline. In addition, a large number of drivers left the district during the pandemic and have chosen not to return. Despite substantial recruiting efforts, we anticipate starting the 2021-22 school year nearly 60 drivers short.
Because of the current bus driver shortage, we know that we will need to rethink how we provide transportation for our general education students.
BVSD is federally mandated to transport special education students with a transportation clause in their Individualized Education Plan and McKinney Vento (homeless) students.
Make a Difference - Be a BVSD Bus Driver!
Update to the Board | Apr. 27, 2021
School Bus Waiting List
Registration to ride the school bus for the 2021-22 school year closed July 1. To sign up for the waiting list, follow the registration instructions below.
Developing Routes & Stops
In the coming weeks, our team will use registration information to develop routes with the goal of trying to accommodate as many students as possible with our limited crew of drivers.
It is likely routes and the distance between stops will be longer so that drivers can cover more geographic area. Please know that even with the most drastic efforts, given the number of registrations we have received, we expect to face a shortage of routes this school year.
In short, we do not believe we will be able to accommodate all General Education students who have registered on BVSD’s school buses at the start of the school year. Communication will be sent by the end of July to let all students who have registered know if they are being offered a route and if so, what their bus stop will be.
Plan for Another Way to Get to School
BVSD’s Safe Routes to School team is eager to help families plan for alternative ways to get to school.
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Carpooling: SchoolPool is a community network with resources that help connect families to carpools or create groups to ride the RTD together, form bicycle trains or walking groups to school. An invitation to join your school’s carpool network will be emailed to all families in July.
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RTD and RTD FlexRide: click here for a list of RTD routes by school. In addition to fixed-route services, RTD offers door-to-door shuttle service in Louisville, Superior and Broomfield through RTD FlexRide. RTD and RTD FlexRide offer discounted student fares of 90 cents per ride.
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Walking or Bicycling is simple, low-cost transportation and summer is a great time to try out your route to school. Keep in mind that the best route by bicycling or walking is often not the same route you would take by car.
- Park & Walk: Avoid the hassle of the hug-n-go and locate a quiet spot to park and walk the rest of the way to school. A short walk is one of the best ways to prepare your student’s brain for learning each morning.
Transportation Advisory Board
BVSD has created a parent and staff Transportation Advisory Board to help us to rethink how we provide transportation, to generate new ideas on how to attract bus drivers to the district, and to develop creative alternative transportation options to fill in gaps.
Continuous Meeting Notes (Espanol)
Meeting 1: May 20, 2021
AGENDA
Meeting 2: May 27, 2021
AGENDA
Meeting 3: June 3, 2021
AGENDA
Meeting 4: June 10, 2021
AGENDA
Meeting 5: June 24, 2021
AGENDA
Meeting 6: July 1, 2021
AGENDA
Important Dates:
April
27 | BOE Presentation
27 | Email to families about bus driver shortage - Join the Team
MAY
07 | TAB Call for Applicants
08 | Transportation Job Fair at Angevine
12 | Email/text to families about registering for the bus
18 | Daily Camera article
21 | Spot article
JUNE
14 | Email/text to families about registering for the bus
16 | Daily Camera article
23 | Registration message included in district update email to families
30 | Transportation Job Fair at the BVSD Education Center
JULY
1 | Email/text to families about registering for the bus - final reminder
1 | Bus Registration window closes at the end of the day
2 | Bus Registration opens for waitlist to be evaluated in September
9 | Email/text to families that have not registered about waitlist
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Bus Registration Instructions
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Learn about all the ways to get to school!
We’d love your student to begin the day refreshed, energized, full of fresh air, and ready to learn. We encourage students and their families to walk, ride bikes, skateboard, scooter, and use other self-propelled methods to get to school year-round!
Check out our Safe Routes to School page
Make a Difference - Be a BVSD Bus Driver!
(or encourage someone you know!)
Every bus driver makes a difference.—Each driver we hire helps us get 100 students to school each day by serving both elementary and secondary routes. Driving a bus for BVSD is a great way to earn competitive pay and benefits and make an impact in children's lives and your community. BVSD provides all the training needed to earn a Commercial Driver's License (CDL) and work with students. The hours are flexible enough to integrate with other jobs or interests. When not driving a bus, BVSD bus drivers are BVSD parents, professional athletes, retirees, college students, artists, entrepreneurs, and more. If this sounds like you or someone you know, have them apply to be a bus driver here.