MN: Some Rochester bus services lapsing amid driver shortage

A shortage of bus drivers has led to lapses in Rochester Public Transit, and riders are being encouraged to watch for potential schedule changes daily.

"We totally recognize this is a concern, and we fully understand this affects the trust in our system, but it is just a momentary lapse in time while we fill positions," Rochester Director of Transit and Parking Ia Xiong said of missed stops and schedule changes seen in recent weeks.

The driver shortage has led Transdev, the company contracted for daily Rochester Public Transportation operations, to pull buses off certain routes at times, extending periods between stops.

Transdev, an international company that touts itself as the largest private operator of public transportation in the United States, didn't return a request for comment, but Xiong said city staff have been working closely to monitor the situation and push for solutions amid driver shortages.

"We try to pick routes with the least ridership," Xiong said, noting backup drivers or supervisors are sought to put the buses on the road before a schedule change is made.

Local 1005 of the Amalgamated Transit Worker Union representative Adam Buzbee said the lack of drivers has resulted in 20 or more buses being sidelined on three different days, largely reducing service for southeast and southwest routes.

Xiong said the missed service is unfortunate, but some of the southern Rochester areas with lapsed service have access to Rochester Public Transit's trial RTP Go service, which is providing on-demand transit service at the same cost of a bus ride.

While that provides limited support, she said efforts are being made to increase RPT staffing.

"They're streamlining the hiring and training process as quickly as they can," she said, adding that the company is holding job fairs to increase recruitment. "They brought in trainers from the Twin Cities to help over the weekends to accelerate the process."

The approach will take time, however.

"These drivers need (commercial driver's licenses), so they need to undergo training and get testing and that takes time before they can be put on the route," she said.

Buzbee said Transdev has access to drivers that could keep more buses on the road, but local management changes have reduced their willingness to pick up overtime.

"This is due to drivers not wanting to work overtime in a toxic environment and micromanaging," he recently told the Rochester City Council.

Council members and Mayor Kim Norton have reported a mix of complaints about the transit service from riders, with several of the elected officials reporting routine calls from union representatives.

"I have heard other concerns about reliability and management-driver relations," Council President Randy Schubring said. "From my perspective, I want to make sure that we are communicating directly and firmly with our contractor our expectations for reliability as well as our city values of customer service, rider-driver respect and safety."

Adri Gomez, a union member, pointed to driver concerns during Monday's council meeting, stating another driver quit last week due to concerns about treatment by managers after an incident involving his bus reportedly being struck by a private vehicle.

"We have to get back to working together to get the routes covered," she told the council.

Buzbee, who said he was fired as an RPT driver in March, said the union has filed grievances and an unfair labor practices claim, but Xiong said those issues are between the employees and the private company.

Xiong said some system changes are being considered to provide more reliability in the system as the driver shortages are addressed, but changes will take time to implement.

"We want to make our system reliable, but in the meantime, there will continue to be some lapse in this as they continue to fill in for their driver shortages," she said.

Until then, she said city staff is doing its best to keep riders informed when changes occur.

"What we are recommending is riders check the Transit app," she said of the smartphone application introduced locally last year. "That's the most up-to-date and reliable."

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