HDPT looking to fill urgent need for bus drivers

HARRISONBURG, Va. (WHSV) - Harrisonburg is looking to fill almost two dozen seats for bus drivers, amounting to 20 employees short for school bus drivers and three drivers for public transit. The city’s department of transportation is using social media to push the career option toward two candidate pools.

“The first as people that are looking to return to the workforce, who may have been retired or semi-retired, and they’re looking to get back out there the other is for working parents,” City of Harrisonburg’s Director of Communications Michael Parks said.

Parks says it is important to get students safely to and from school on time. The HDPT is working with the schools to get these jobs filled as soon as possible.

“They placed yard signs out on their campuses, letting parents know if there’s an opportunity that should reach out to us,” Parks said.

Getting a commercial driver’s license is quicker than people may think, and people from college students to retirees can qualify for it.

HDPT is looking at a number of things for the future between a micro-transit study and when bus fares will come back. There is one thing the department is looking forward to this year.

“We have two new electric school buses that should be arriving soon and they will be able to work into the fleet as we look at more electric-vehicle, hybrid-vehicle options, that’s one place that we know that we want to go in the future,” Parks said.

HDPT commits to paying the willing candidate from the very start with training.

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