The state Department of Education says 2,400 public school students will remain without bus service even after 34 of the 147 suspended school bus routes are reinstated Monday.

Deputy Superintendent of Operations Randy Moore said the DOE needs 67 more school bus drivers to transport the remaining 2,400 students without service.

Service for 1,200 riders will be restored at 23 schools on Oahu, Hawaii island and Maui. Students’ parents and guardians will be notified directly of updates.

Roberts Hawaii will step in Monday to provide buses and drivers to assist the state’s contractor, Ground Transport Inc., in the school bus workforce shortage, DOE schools Superintendent Keith Hayashi said Friday at a news conference.

But using drivers from Roberts is a temporary fix and not a long-term solution, Moore said. Ultimately, it is the contractor that must hire more drivers to fill its needs, he said.

The DOE announced Aug. 1 it was temporarily suspending 108 routes serving nearly 2,900 students in Central Oahu and East Hawaii island. Then it announced Aug. 2 another suspension of 39 routes for Central and Upcountry Maui schools, cutting service to 820 students.

Moore said the timeline is uncertain as to when the routes will be reinstated.

“We expect as early as the week after next to begin to add to the number of routes where the services are restored,” he said Friday.

Moore said the shortage is both a statewide and national problem. There is a regular turnover of drivers due to retirement and a variety of personal reasons, and contractors are in constant recruitment, training, getting drivers licensed and running background checks.

When asked why the DOE waited until just before the start of school to announce the shortage of bus drivers, Hayashi said DOE officials had been in communication with the contractor and learned of the potential of a shortage July 30 and made the decision to notify families there may not be enough drivers to cover the routes. So on July 31 the DOE suspended some of the routes to ensure “we could cover what we could cover,” he said.

Moore said Ground Transport’s contract went into effect Aug. 1, and defended the selection of the company, saying it has been a reliable contractor for more than 40 years.

The criteria used to select the contractor include the price and whether it has a history, a base yard and buses.

As to when the DOE knew Ground Transport would be unable to fulfill its driver commitments, Moore said, “We didn’t realize it until early last week.”

Ground Transport asked Roberts Hawaii for help, and Roberts Hawaii in turn called Moore.

Gov. Josh Green’s Aug. 2 emergency proclamation allowed the DOE to find a temporary solution, allowing Roberts Hawaii to assist Ground Transport through a new direct contract.

When asked whether contracts could be structured to allow more than one contractor, Moore said there are several dozen contracts with each geographic area having one contract and one contractor.

He said the request for proposals allowed two providers to pair up and submit a joint proposal, but “I don’t believe we received any, but it did permit it.”

Although drivers are paid $32 an hour, according to Ground Transport, a National Education Association article says school bus drivers often work less than full time, working a split-shift schedule with hours coinciding with the start and end of the school day, often with fewer benefits.

Ground Transport did not return a call for comment.

Hayashi said, “I want to assure you that we are working diligently to restore all suspended bus routes,” adding that DOE officials are exploring partnerships with tour bus companies, tapping into their drivers and other commercial driver licensing drivers in other industries.

The emergency proclamation also would allow the Hawaii National Guard to assist. DOE has been in talks with the Guard and is submitting a request for assistance, Hayashi said.

Hayashi said DOE officials notified parents Thursday they are using a streamlined refund process, “so families don’t have to do anything” and also will be reimbursed for an additional week.