PGCPS reports progress on bus delays

Prince George’s County Public Schools leaders say driver vacancies are down to 41 and ride times are dropping.

Driver vacancies drop to 41

As of Sept. 17, all early childhood students have received bus assignments, with the number of students without a bus assignment dropping from more than 400 to roughly 100 among those experiencing homelessness.

Route times under 90 minutes

All but a "couple" of routes have trimmed transit times below 90 minutes, with adjustments specifically targeted at Dora Kennedy French Immersion and Robert Goddard Montessori.

Driver absences strain operations

Between 120 and 140 drivers call out daily, a 7% to 10% daily absence rate that compounds with open vacancies.

Parents demand Chipmunk fixes

Terence Clegg, a parent of three children at Robert Goddard and a candidate for the vacant District 2 board seat, demanded that the district "fix Chipmunk or fire Chipmunk".

“If I can reliably track my pepperoni pizza from oven to doorstep, surely we can provide parents with reliable information about where their children are”

Drivers report low pay and stress

Driver Paula Long testified that actual route assignments failed to match the routes that drivers had selected through the annual bidding process and criticized the expiration of incentive pay for extra runs.

Tech failures persist

The board said it has established a 12-step plan with Chipmunk to improve the app but district officials did not respond to The Banner’s request for comment on the plan’s details.