The same government agencies issued a Sept. Several days later, the scope of the effort expanded. “Obviously the goal here is to try to make sure if we have vehicles, we put people on them who are qualified to drive them and do what we can to make sure kids can get to school,” he said, according to that newspaper. Soon after issuing the news release, Baker told reporters the federal government would reimburse the state (like many expenses incurred during the pandemic) for the cost of deploying National Guard troops for the job, though he did not share an estimated price tag, The Boston Globe reported. Those vehicles are transport vans that, according to state regulators, have a maximum of 11 seats - including the driver. Once trained, National Guard members would use so-called " 7D vehicles" for the trips, the release stated. Charlie Baker ordered 90 National Guard members to prepare to take students to and from schools in four cities north of Boston, and dozens of more members to stand by in case they're needed. These Guard personnel will be available to serve as drivers of school transport vans known as 7D vehicles to address staffing shortages in certain districts. Beginning with training on Tuesday, 90 Guard members will prepare for service in Chelsea, Lawrence, Lowell, and Lynn. The Governor’s order makes up to 250 personnel available. Governor Charlie Baker today will activate the Massachusetts National Guard in response to requests from local communities for assistance with school transportation as the 2021-2022 school year gets underway in the Commonwealth. 13, 2021, the Massachusetts National Guard and state's education and public safety departments said in a joint news release obtained by Snopes: The Associated Press contributed to this story.The reports were true. Her company conducted a survey in March that found nearly 80% of districts that responded were having trouble finding enough bus drivers. The driver shortfall isn't new this year - Lynn had issues in the spring, for example - but a labor shortage across many sectors and the pandemic's lingering effects have made it worse, since about half the workforce was over 65 and more vulnerable to the virus, Joanna McFarland, co-founder and CEO of school ride-service company HopSkipDrive, which tracks school bus issues, has said. "We're doing everything we can to make sure that every single bus is available for students," Janey said that day. The Boston school bus drivers' union had pushed to postpone the start of school the year, calling the situation "the worst fiasco we've witnessed in our careers." The union said the district gave them more than 100 additional routes than they've had in prior years at the last minute.īut Boston Public Schools said the district had a 57% on-time rate Thursday morning, better than the five-year average for the first day of school. Some parents said buses didn't show up on the first day, despite Mayor Kim Janey's promise that they would. School districts around the country have been contending with the school bus driver shortage, which hampered the start of this school year in Boston. Drivers must have a special certificate, and Monday's announcement noted that members of the guard working on this missing "will meet all statutory requirements for 7D drivers."Īs students returned to full-time in-person learning in Boston, a school bus driver shortage led to question marks. Under state law, 7D vehicles, also known as " school pupil transport vehicles," can carry no more than 10 passengers and must weigh under 10,000 pounds. We are thankful for Governor Baker's partnership," Boyd said. We have been working together with the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education to come up with solutions to transport students safely to and from school each day. "The shortage of school bus drivers has been a challenge for school districts across the country this year. Lowell schools Superintendent Joel Boyd said in a statement that 15 National Guard drivers will be available by the end of the week, in a partnership that will continue until enough permanent drivers to fill their slots. North Carolina GOP seeks to override governor's veto of bill banning gender-affirming care for minors
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