ASHWAUBENON, Wis. (NBC 26) -- There are still some unknowns when it comes to students returning to school in person this upcoming school year. Lamers Bus Lines is still preparing for the school year, though. On Wednesday it held a company-wide job fair for school bus drivers.
Jim Gamble, a terminal manager with Lamers Bus Lines, said as a company, they're trying to prepare as best as they can. He added that they're working closely with school districts and partners to plan for the school year. He said the don't know what it will look like at this point, though. He said there has not been a firm decision yet as to what will happen. He said it's likely too early to decide as things are changing so frequently.
Gamble added that they are doing what they can as a company. He said there will probably be hand sanitizers on the buses. He said whether masks will be required is up to the school districts. Gamble told NBC 26 there have also been discussions about having one student or one family group per seat or seating students every other seat. He said there are a lot of different ideas, but at the end of the day, there's a certain number of buses and students. He said if they use them, they'll have to use them the best way they can.
"We continue to sanitize our buses on a daily basis. The drivers will have stuff on board to sanitize in between routes, in between loops, to clean the common touch points and that kind of stuff," said Gamble. "Then at the end of the day, I think the plan will be to thoroughly clean and sanitize the buses at the end of each day so they're ready to go the following day."
He said they've been trying to talk with drivers on a regular basis to see how they're feeling and let them know that whatever they do, they will do it safely. He said most of the drivers are very positive and eager to get back to driving the students to and from school.
