Parents petition to reopen rural school due to bus driver shortage

A group of parents in Ottawa's rural southwest is fighting to reopen the former community school because the lack of school buses has some kids not making it to school at all.

The Ottawa Student Transportation Authority (OSTA) cancelled hundreds of routes just days before the start of the school year in the city's two English school boards due to the ongoing bus driver shortage — stranding many children in the village of Munster who bus to school.

Public transit is not feasible, according to parents, nor is a taxi or virtual learning.

"Some kids are getting homeschooled, some parents are adjusting their schedule and arranging carpooling, or their kids are only going a couple of days a week because they can't physically get their kids there the other days," said Jennifer Bugden, president of the Munster Community Association.

Kids in the village used to walk to Munster Elementary School before it was closed by the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board (OCDSB) in 2015 because enrolment was too low.

Now children are bused to other schools, in some cases 50 minutes away.

Bugden and four other parents started an online petition to have the Ontario legislature force the OCDSB to reopen Munster school or offer the school to other boards.

Local Progressive Conservative MPP Goldie Ghamari is set to present the petition to the legislature on Sept. 25.

40 days of missed school

This year, Danica Ainger's seven-year-old son and four-year-old twin daughters will attend Richmond Public School — if they can get there.

Last year, the family didn't have a consistent driver. To start the 2023 school year, the driver for their route is in training. It is unclear when a full-time driver will be in place.

"We're going to hope that we … work out rides for our kids," Ainger said. "Otherwise, they just don't get to go."

Her son missed about 40 days of school last year because of the busing problem, she added.

"Consistency is so key for kids," she said. "So to have that routine completely wrecked before we even start is not … a great step to go into school."

Ainger said she worries her kids will fall behind, something Bugden worries about for the whole community especially after the pandemic.

"It is scary that our kids are not getting the education that they deserve," Bugden said.

Cheri Nixon, who lives in Osgoode and whose 14-year-old attends Canterbury High School in southeast Ottawa, organized an impromptu carpooling arrangement with other parents.

She said for them, OC Transpo is not a viable alternative.

"Why are they not looking at reallocating things so that they're more efficient?" Nixon asked.

Disruption 'extremely painful,' OSTA says

Vicky Kyriaco, general manager of the OSTA, told CBC Radio's All In A Day she recognizes the lack of service is "extremely painful" to parents in the short-term.

Kyriaco said the authority gave short notice of the cancellations because it wanted to ensure it had done everything possible to secure transportation for those students.

OSTA will explore a range of options to solve the issue, she said, including the possibility of offering coach bus shuttles or reallocating buses from high schools.

Kyriaco said more funding from the province would allow the OSTA to increase wages for drivers and make the job more appealing.

Munster school not considered 'as a solution,' OCDSB says

In an email, OCDSB said it recognizes "the challenges that the transportation shortage is presenting for families."

The school board is not, however, considering reopening the school in Munster.

"The former Munster Hamlet Public School has been closed for eight years and, for many reasons, could not be considered for use as a solution to the current transportation issues," OCDSB said.

The Ministry of Education did not answer CBC's questions about the possibility of the school reopening. A spokesperson said in an email the ministry is committed to building schools "with a nearly $15 billion investment over 10 years to build, expand and renew schools across Ontario."

The ministry has invested $75 million between the OCDSB and the Ottawa Catholic School Board for student transportation funding for the 2023-24 school year.

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