Andover Schools Not Getting Help From State On Bus Problems

ANDOVER, MA — Andover Public Schools has not received any help from the state on its busing challenges, the district spokeswoman said, despite the Massachusetts National Guard being activated to assist nearby districts with the same issue.

Up to 250 Guard members will be available to help districts, with 90 initially being trained to help in Chelsea, Lawrence, Lowell and Lynn. The National Guard is providing drivers for school transport vans known as 7D vehicles.

A shortage of bus drivers has affected schools across the country.

"At this time, we have not been informed by the transportation companies who service APS that the Governor’s announcement activating the Massachusetts National Guard will directly impact us in Andover," Andover Public Schools spokeswoman Nicole Kieser said.

"Class 7D is for student vehicles that are restricted to having a passenger capacity of no more than 10 persons, including the driver," Kieser noted.

However, Kieser said, the district's bus contractor Trombly does have candidates working on CDL licenses, which are needed to drive large school buses.

"As Trombly and NRT are able to add additional drivers, they will attempt to return to dedicated routes as initially designed," she said.

In a communication to families Friday, Superintendent Magda Parvey described changes to bus routes caused by the shortage; certain bus routes have been tiered, despite efforts going into the year to eliminate all B-runs.

"Regardless of any mitigating factors, I understand that it’s difficult to trust that the system will work seamlessly moving forward," Parvey said. "I am optimistic that with continued communication with our transportation providers, we will be able to provide better information to our families and improve transportation services for our students in the coming weeks."

Christopher Huffaker can be reached at 412-265-8353 or chris.huffaker@patch.com.