The South East Cornerstone Public School Division is continuing to deal with a shortage of bus drivers as student ridership rises across the region. The issue was the focus of the transportation report presented at the division’s board meeting on June 17th, where officials also noted efforts to improve service heading into the 2025-26 school year.
Transportation Foreman Jesse Forsyth delivered the report on behalf of outgoing Manager of Facilities and Transportation Andy Dobson. The data, comparing June 2024, January 2025, and June 2025, shows that 4,680 students are currently being transported across 157 routes, an increase of 87 students since last June. The growth in ridership aligns with the addition of two new routes introduced since January, including expansions in Weyburn and Estevan.
Despite these additions, five routes remain unfilled. However, Forsyth expressed confidence that at least two, serving the Lyndale and Redvers areas, will be staffed by fall.
The board also reviewed average and longest rural one-way ride times, which remain a concern for families in outlying areas. Director of Education Keith Keating noted in an interview with Discover Weyburn that while routes are reviewed annually for efficiency, the sheer distances involved in rural Saskatchewan limit how much optimization is possible.
“When you look at the distances from some of our outlying schools, like students on the far side of Oungre that are having to travel to Weyburn or Estevan for high school, you realize how far some of those distances really are,” Keating said.
The driver shortage has led to significant service interruptions, with 692 full-day and 173 half-day bus route cancellations reported in the past school year due to a lack of substitute drivers. Keating acknowledged the inconvenience to families, but noted that attendance rates have not suffered significantly, thanks in part to parents stepping up to transport their children when needed.
“We’re grateful for parents who get their children to school when there is a lack of drivers or buses are down,” he said. “To this point, we’ve been lucky.”
Mechanical issues were responsible for another 89 cancellations, but Keating emphasized that these were largely weather-related rather than a result of an aging fleet.
“Quite often that cold will bring with it buses that won’t start sometimes in the morning,” he said. “We know that cold is also much harder on mechanical equipment.”
Recruitment remains the division’s top strategy for closing the driver gap. A multi-pronged approach is underway, including newspaper ads, school newsletters, community posters, social media campaigns, recruitment fairs, and targeted mailouts. Keating encouraged anyone interested in becoming a driver to contact the division.
Looking ahead, Keating said there are no immediate plans to add more routes, but enrollment and ridership will be reviewed again in the fall.