Boston's school buses are delivering more students to class in time by fifth day

More students in Boston Public Schools are making it to class on time due to timelier bus arrivals.

By the fifth day of class, about 78% of district school buses arrived before the morning bell, according to data shared by officials on Wednesday. That rate has been steadily increasing since last Thursday, the first day of school, when only half of school buses got kids to class on time.

"Ensuring that our students get to school and home in a timely manner is our top priority," district officials said in a statement.

Bus delays are a common issue in the first week of school for most districts. Officials said on-time performance is always a challenge during the first few days since "drivers are navigating new bus routes under real conditions as compared to practice runs, while families and school staff are meeting bus drivers and monitors for the first time."

This school year's on-time arrival rates at BPS mirror prior years. But unlike previous school years, the first days of school in Boston this year came in the middle of a month-long shutdown of the MBTA's Orange Line, which led to an increase in traffic on city roads.

BPS also made progress on reducing the number of bus trips with no available driver. There were 42 uncovered trips on the first day of class. By Wednesday, there was only one uncovered trip, according to the district.

Transporting kids back home in a timely manner in the afternoon is also a work in progress: slightly more than half of school buses arrived in time by the final bell to take kids home on the first day. By day four, that rate improved to 79%.

Officials said they're confident the on-time arrival rates will continue to improve.

"We are working around the clock on behalf of our students and staff to constantly improve our transportation system," they said in an email.