HOWARD COUNTY — More problems with getting to school in Howard County. Late Monday night the district sent a message to parents saying that 20 bus routes won't be covered the rest of the week.
The message said this is an issue with one of its bus contractors, Zum Transportation, who said the issue is because of driver call outs.
The contractor said it currently has drivers in training and is working to address the vacancies but can't serve certain routes.
The routes that Zum will not be able to cover for August 29 – September 1 are:
- 1020 - Mt Hebron HS, Patapsco MS, St John’s Lane ES
- 1023 - Centennial HS, Centennial Lane ES, St John’s Lane ES
- 1148 - Atholton HS, Cradlerock ES
- 1161 - Atholton HS, Thunder Hill ES
- 1163 - Wilde Lake HS, Wilde Lake MS
- 1165 - Atholton HS, Wilde Lake MS
- 1168 - Atholton HS, Mayfield Woods MS, Bellows Spring ES
- 1191 - Long Reach HS, Lake Elkhorn MS, Atholton ES
- 1078 - Clarksville MS, Pointers Run ES
- 1090 - Reservoir HS, Hammond MS, Forest Ridge ES
- 1155 - Oakland Mills HS, Phelps Luck ES, Thunder Hill ES
- 1201 - Long Reach HS, Phelps Luck ES, Atholton ES
- 1122 - Patuxent Valley MS, Murray Hill MS
- 1144 - Atholton HS, Swansfield ES, Waterloo ES
- 1053 - Dunloggin MS, Burleigh Manor MS, Northfield ES
- 1176 - Atholton HS, Talbot Springs ES, Waterloo ES
- 1089 - Hammond HS, Bollman Bridge ES, Gorman Crossing ES
- 1070 - Hammond HS, Hammond MS, Guilford ES
- 1173 - Clarksville MS, Pointers Run ES, Swansfield ES
- 1154 - Wilde Lake HS, Wilde Lake MS, Running Brook ES
Zum Transportation is asking that alternative arrangements be made for students.
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Parents were already frustrated as there were issues with buses showing up late, in some cases hours after school started, on the first day.
The superintendent has pledged to personally monitor any transportation issues correcting them as quickly as possible.
Howard County announced a 5-year deal with Zum in June. The company is expected to bring 250 new buses to the county in that time period.
At a press conference in June, Zum COO, Vivek Garg, said, "Parents will be able to track every single bus on their app and they will know where their child is at any given time. When they are being transported by Zum, similarly, the school district will know at all the time where all the buses are and if any buses running late or there's anything, you know, which is going on with the transportation on that particular day."
