NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) — Norfolk Public Schools says it is “actively recruiting” for bus drivers amid a national shortage.
Khalilah LeGrand, the district’s senior director of communications and media relations, said Norfolk had 54 openings for contracted bus drivers as of Thursday.
Norfolk is among other school districts in Hampton Roads have a number of openings for school bus drivers.
10 On Your Side learned before the school year started that there were 33 openings in Chesapeake, 25 in Virginia Beach, 14 in Portsmouth, six in Suffolk and four in Williamsburg.
Chesapeake Public Schools even offered signing bonuses for new bus driver candidates.
LeGrand said, some drivers may run more than one route per day to meet daily demand and a pool of drivers is used to manage route shortages.
Staff at the district’s transportation department are also qualified and able to help running routes when necessary, LeGrand said.
Those interested in applying for a job as a full-time or substitute school bus driver in Norfolk can visit the district’s website.