HORSEHEADS, NY (WENY) -- The bus driver shortage continues to affect school districts nationwide, and the Horseheads Central School District is no exception.

According to the Economic Policy Institute, school bus driver employment is still struggling to recover to pre-pandemic levels. Richard Micelotta, the Director of Transportation for the district, says many of the bus drivers were older and decided not to return to work after the pandemic.  

"It really scared a lot of our bus drivers off," he explained. The Economic Policy Institute reports in 2021, 72.6 percent of school bus drivers employed by state and local governments were aged 50 or older – a rate higher than the 37.5 percent of all state and local government workers and the 30.8 percent of workers in the private sector within the same age group.  

“Bus drivers can't work from home so, like a lot of other industries, they just did not come back versus you know, the tech world can.” 

To entice more people to join the work transportation workforce, Micellota says the starting wage has been bumped up to $23.90, however, he adds “We really have not seen great progress.” 

Additionally, with hopes of educating the public on the importance of school bus drivers, there are other benefits that come with the role.  

“[School bus drivers are] eligible for the state retirement system. So, if you're a school bus driver, you can be in the state retirement system and [be] eligible for retirement. Also, in Horseheads school district, you qualify for medical insurance. So even though it's a part-time job, you can have medical insurance 12 months out of the year. We're trying to enhance the job the best we can.” 

The main hurdle Micellota finds himself facing is getting the word out to the community to inform more people about the benefits and incentives to recruit more drivers.  

The shortage has caused a ripple effect that is felt across the country. Due to low numbers, Micellota pointed out that some districts in other parts of the U.S. have had to delay school start times. In other cases, the shortages have increased traffic with more cars on the road with parents now having to take their children to school. As a result, this increases the risk of accidents.  

“Bus driving is the safest means of getting students to school. So that's why we want to encourage it, and it has so many logistical problems in neighborhoods, in communities for school districts. It's a ripple effect that you really don't see until [suddenly] there's not enough school buses for our kids.”  

Horseheads School District is also continuing negotiations with the school drivers' union to improve working conditions and pay further. 

“Administration works very closely with our department of bus drivers to make sure that student behavior is dealt with. Our mechanics very often deal with bus safety. We have a 99, I think, percent rate of bus safety regarding our Department of Transportation and the maintenance of our buses.” 

Anyone interested in becoming a bus driver can directly contact the Horseheads School District at (607)-739-5601 x4300 or visit the website using this link. The Transportation Department can also be reached at (607)-739-6338.