Jim Thorpe Area School District officials say they are working to address transportation issues brought up by parents in the first week of school.

During a school board meeting, district officials acknowledged issues with service since school began Sept. 6.

“A lot of schools are dealing with this. That doesn’t make it right, but we’re working on it,” said Scott Pompa, school board president.

In some cases, the shortage of bus drivers has forced the district to use one bus to cover the bus stops normally served by two. Parents have reported students riding overcrowded buses and missing bus stops.

The district has blamed a widespread shortage of bus drivers. Its bus contractor, Brandywine Transportation, has been offering bonuses of $2,500 for drivers with a commercial license, and offering to pay to train drivers who don’t. Brandywine said that they ideally need 3-5 more drivers to cover the district’s bus runs.

Pompa said that issues during the first week of school are not uncommon. He said that the bus runs should become more efficient as the district finds out which students get rides from parents and don’t need scheduled stops.

The district has restarted an activity bus which takes students from practices at the high school back to Penn Kidder, so parents don’t have to drive to pick them up. When the bus wasn’t available at the start of the year, some parents said it would lead to students having to quit their sports.

Superintendent Robert Presley said busing for athletics is important, but second to getting students to school.

Pompa said that other districts have reached out to Jim Thorpe because they have their own issues finding drivers.

“We’re aware of the issues, we’re hearing everybody, we’re doing our best to resolve them,” he said.