OSSE-DOT updates re: recent delays and canceled routes – Monday Jan 23rd.

REPOSTED AND UPDATED!

OSSE continues to struggle to transport students to school.  On Monday, January 23rd, OSSE reports that 119 bus routes are delayed.  OSSE has shared that parents will be reimbursed if your student’s bus is listed here and you wish to self-transport or utilize ride-share.

If you want to apply for parent reimbursement, please complete the certification and W9 forms (see below links), then submit them using OSSE’s BOX upload site. OSSE reports that reimbursement processing may take up to 60 days, AJE strongly encourages families to submit their claims quickly, as we understand that parents have experienced delays in excess of 60 days.  AJE can help you complete these forms and submit them if needed.

Parent Reimbursement Forms  Guidelines  |  English  |  Spanish

Certification Form  |  English |  Spanish

W-9  |  English  |  Spanish

Earlier in the school year, many problems were due to OSSE’s upgrade to a new data system, more recently a global re-routing has presented significant challenges.  OSSE’s ongoing struggles to hire and retain staff is another problem, as it has been nationwide.  Unfortunately, DC did not take advantage of some temporary changes in federal licensing rules intended to make it easier to hire bus drivers.  While OSSE has offered reimbursement to families who are entitled to transportation and experience persistent problems, they are experiencing long delays in actually paying families back and many families remain unaware of the option to receive reimbursement.  Many innovations OSSE was planning have been scrapped – the long-awaited parent portal for transportation information has been delayed, but should launch this summer, the app announced in 2019 that was intended to allow families to track their student’s bus has remained in the pilot testing stages for years, and the parent stipend program AJE called a promising idea in our testimony at the City Council last year, is no longer under consideration by OSSE.

Most recently it appears that OSSE is struggling with staffing and that there has been a large call-out of bus drivers and attendants.  OSSE sent the letter copied below to school leaders last week.  AJE is sharing this with families because we think it is important information for families to have.  OSSE has also shared this link with families and schools – https://osse.dc.gov/page/daily-dot-updates – it lists all impacted routes, AJE encourages families to check that page on OSSE’s website if their child’s bus is late, as wait times at the OSSE-DOT Parent Resource Center are very long.  Finally, AJE parents will notice that OSSE-DOT has new leadership; Micheal Riley is the new Director of Student Transportation Services.

If you have any questions after reviewing the letter from OSSE below, please feel free to give us a call or drop us an email.

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Dear School Leaders:

Thank you for your patience with the OSSE Division of Transportation (OSSE-DOT). This past week, many of your students experienced significant delays in bus service because of a large employee callout and the necessary switch to a new routing system. Additionally, OSSE-DOT has had a sizeable shortage of drivers and attendants this school year. Without adequate staffing to cover all routes, we have had to make difficult and complex decisions to meet ridership demands, including:

  • Combine routes and add more children onto a bus route;
  • Send our drivers and attendants out to run multiple routes consecutively; and
  • As a last resort, drop and not service routes.

As we continue to urgently stabilize our routes, we expect many routes to begin experiencing the consistency and reliability that parents and schools expect; however, due to our staffing challenges, we also expect some routes to continue to experience service delays for the foreseeable futureIn the next few days, OSSE-DOT will communicate a revised pick-up time for routes that are most severely impacted. This means some students will receive pick-up times that are close to or past school bell time and drop off times that will require longer ride times.

What Schools Can Urge Parents to Do:

If a student experienced routine service delays last week, the parent is eligible for OSSE’s parent reimbursement program. Parent reimbursements are eligible for self-travel and full ride-share costs (e.g., Uber/Lyft) for commutes to and from school.

To avoid ongoing service delays, please encourage parents to consider self-travel or ride shares. They will have to complete the certification and W9 forms (see below links), then submit it using our secure BOX upload site. Reimbursement processing may take up to 60 days.

Parent Reimbursement Forms

Parents may also choose to utilize the Kids Ride Free Program. The Kids Ride Free (KRF) program allows students to ride for free on Metrobus, Metrorail, and the DC Circulator while traveling within the District. Cards can be made available in 2-3 days.

Our Plan for Staffing Shortages:

We are taking several immediate steps to address our staffing shortages. On Jan. 12, we announced a new attendance incentive for our terminal operations staff, including bus drivers and attendants, to reduce absenteeism. In addition to our active hiring process, we will be hosting a job fair in the coming weeks to quickly fill vacancies for drivers, bus attendants, and call center staff.

Again, we deeply regret the challenges in service delivery that students, parents, and schools are experiencing. We will continue to update you as we move OSSE-DOT forward. If you have questions, please call the Parent Resource Center at (202) 576-5000. Operating hours for the Parent Resource Center are Monday through Friday, 5 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Michael Riley
Director, Student Transportation Services
Office of the State Superintendent of Education
Government of the District of Columbia

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