Chicago is giving the families of stranded school children $1,000 to cover the cost of transportation for the next two weeks following a disastrous first day of classes that saw 2,100 students without a ride due to a bus driver shortage.
“This is an all-hands-on-deck moment,” Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot said on Monday after parents were forced to fork over cash to ride-sharing companies such as Lyft and Uber to get their children to and from school.
The district sent messages all weekend to reassure families of a safe rollout amid a surge in COVID-19 cases brought on by the delta variant but failed to mention that 2,1000 students would not receive bus service.
The district said that the combination of a national bus driver shortage, as well as a rush of resignations driven by COVID-19 vaccination requirements, were to blame.
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One of the students affected was Isaac Lewis, who attends Southside Occupational Academy, a transition center for students 16-22 years old with disabilities.
His mother, Cincerlyn Lewis, dropped him off in the morning before work but had counted on the bus to take him home. With none available, he was forced to take a Lyft ride-share home. The nine-mile drive took 30 minutes and cost $36.
“It’s chaos,” Lewis told CBS-2. “It’s utter chaos.”
Lewis said her son did well with Lyft, but she is concerned because he’s a special needs student.
“I’m always worried if he gets the wrong driver,” she said. “If things don’t go as planned, it could be dangerous.”
About 990 special education students were without a ride for the first day, officials said.
Last week, 90 drivers resigned, including 73 on Friday alone, leaving the district short 500 drivers.
The private school bus industry has faced shortages for years, but the pandemic has led many career drivers to quit or retire.
Families affected by the loss of school bus service will receive $1,000 for the first two weeks and $500 in the following months to offset some of the costs.
Lewis said she’s skeptical the money offered by Chicago Public Schools will cover all costs in the future.
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CPS parent Eric DeChant said he and his neighbors were scrambling for carpools and other ways to get their children to school. He told the Chicago Tribune that he was sympathetic to the district’s situation but had hoped they’d have better plans in place to deal with the issue.
“I’m wondering: What is Plan B? There must be options out there somewhere besides just saying, ‘You’re on your own, here’s some money,” DeChant said.
Calls for comment to CPS by the Washington Examiner were not immediately returned.
