Two bus routes to be restored for East Hawai‘i schools

Two school bus routes in East Hawai‘i will be reinstated starting Sept. 30.

According to Hawai‘i Department of Education, the two restored routes for the Ka‘ū-Keaʻau-Pāhoa Complex Area will be serviced by Ground Transport for Pāhoa Elementary and Pāhoa High & Intermediate.

Over 100 bus routes were temporarily suspended at the beginning of the 2024-25 public school year, impacting nearly 2,900 students throughout the state, due to a bus driver shortage.

The state has slowly been reinstating service to those complex areas impacted by the shortage. Following the restoration of the four routes next Monday, a total of 100 routes will have been restored statewide.

Efforts to restore the remaining 38 suspended bus routes throughout the state are ongoing.

Parents and guardians of student riders will be notified directly of restored routes and any necessary route modifications.

Ground Transport is actively recruiting new drivers, leveraging the governor’s emergency proclamation to streamline the hiring process. The proclamation allows drivers with a commercial driver’s license and a “P” endorsement – permitting them to transport passengers – to operate school buses temporarily, in lieu of the “S” endorsement specifically required for school bus drivers.

The company is also exploring partnerships with other tour bus operators to further expand capacity.

More updates will be provided as additional bus routes are restored.