Blame the economy. The image. The wages. The hours. The recruiting. Add in age requirements, insurance factors, and an attitude by more than a few job seekers who dont really want to work.

There is no shortage of reasons why motorcoach operators across the

U.S. and Canada face a shortage of qualified drivers. Owners and managers relate driver recruiting experiences that would be laughable were they not so shocking and even sad.

Even so, some operators plagued by the driver dilemma have come up with suggestions for recruiting and retaining a quality driver force.

Michael Kraft of Kraftours in Tulsa laments: 'The applicants were getting are so bad I would rather see my coaches in the parking lot. The quality of applicants is breathtakingly bad.'

Kraft, who grew up in the bus industry, says, 'The drivers Im seeing these days, for whatever reason, are scary. One would imagine that when one is hoping to find a job and hes test driving a coach with one of the principals of the company, one might be on ones best behavior.'

He tells of a school bus driver who settled behind the wheel of one of Krafts coaches for a test drive and said he was used to driving automatic transmissions.

'I told him this coach was automatic,' Kraft says. 'Then he asks me whether the pedal to the right of the steering wheel is the clutch. I told him, Typically we refer to that as the brake. The one next to it is the throttle or gas pedal. I was doing my best to assure him it was an automatic.'

Kraft pauses and says: 'I could teach an orangutan to drive an automatic gear box coach and have the same amount of body damage. Its unbelievable.'

Making an impression

Speaking of unbelievable, Kraft tells of one applicant who never got the bus out of the company parking lot. He rolled over railroad ties that line the driveway.

Another applicant was able to maneuver out of the parking lot for his road test, and then he took off 'like a bat out of hell,' says Kraft. 'Mrs. Kennedys ride to the hospital in Dallas could not have been as harrowing. I thought I was on a fire truck. He raced through intersections. I have a reputation of providing safe transportation. Thats why I tell (recruits) when they approach an intersection with a green light, approach it as if it is yellow. You dont know whats coming.'

Kraft recalls a shocking experience a San Francisco operator had: 'I was complaining to him about the quality of drivers were getting and he said one of his drivers took a coach out in the morning and damaged it, and took another one out in the afternoon and damaged it, too.'

Operators are oftentimes willing to put up with poor drivers because there are no other options, he says. There was a time when retired professionals, including school principals, concert violinists and fire fighters, wanted something else to do.

'I can teach someone like that to be a good coach driver,' Kraft says.

'I cant take someone who is not a responsible person and teach him to be a responsible person. This population today has other interests.'

He suggests that coach operators who are friendly competitors locally and nationally get together and agree on reasonable expectations for new drivers.

'There has to be an ongoing effort on the part of the industry that there are certain characteristics of drivers below which we cannot go,' Kraft says. 'Even something as critical as a pre-trip inspection, which is the foundation of a safe trip. Drivers tell me, Im a driver, Im not a mechanic. Youre going to have to take care of that yourself. If pilots took that same cavalier attitude the sky would be raining airplanes.'

The regular-work issue

Pay is definitely a factor with the driver shortage. School districts and transit authorities, also starving for drivers, are able to pay enough and to assure they work enough hours.

'Coach operators cant do that,' Kraft says. 'Our busy times may vary.

We may come to a point where we put a driver on salary. If I do that, I want real live drivers who are committed to the notion that it benefits drivers tremendously to come in on days theyre not driving and participate in the maintenance of their vehicles. They might learn something.'

Kraft takes every applicant on the same road test under the same weather conditions.

'Im not looking for a driver who is perfect,' he says. 'Im looking for someone who can adapt to driving a vehicle for the first time. I want to see how he reacts to various situations.'

Cruising through a neighborhood, Kraft watches to see if the driver checks left and right -- and up, to avoid low-hanging tree branches. Then he has them stop and back around a corner.

'Its really a test designed to unnerve them,' Kraft says. 'Theres nothing more unnerving than a load of teenagers at night.'

Not enough right stuff

Ralph Young, president of Young Transportation in Ashville, N.C., says his biggest challenge today is 'drivers -- finding, hiring and maintaining the type of people we look for.'

Young doesnt place help-wanted ads in newspapers because 'the undesirables come out of woodwork.' He relies on word-of-mouth.

Godfrey Lebron, vice president and general manager of Paradise Travel in Hicksville, N.Y., says the education system is not churning out people the industry wants to employ.

When Lebron started out, a person could get a license to drive a bus at the age of 18. Now its 21. 'We had a whole generation of college students who drove buses while doing their undergraduate work,' he says. 'Young kids infused talent into the industry. But theyre not filling those positions today. Hiring retirees for a few years -- you cant build an industry on that.'

Problems in attracting young drivers include no overtime pay, long hours and work on holidays and weekends. 'Its not an attractive work schedule,' Lebron observes.

Increasing the age for a commercial driver license to 21 from 18 more than a decade ago hurt recruitment efforts. 'Now when kids reach 21 theyre already working other jobs,' he says.

Never too young

Lebron suggests having drivers do a show-and-tell in schools to attract prospects. 'We need to start early,' he says. 'We cant wait until college. Weve got to do a better job of recruiting, but theres no silver bullet.'

Brian Scott, vice president of Escot Bus Lines in Largo, Fla., says its tough to find good drivers in a good economy. Driver pay needs to increase, matched by an increase in rates, he says.

Scott also blames image, saying bus drivers dont have the same level of respect afforded employees of railroads and airlines.

'Often people we want to hire are disqualified because they dont have enough experience or have too many points on their license,' Scott says. 'Occasionally they cant pass the pre-employment drug screening.

'Were under so much scrutiny because we carry school kids. Its gotten

to the point that any blemish on a driving record and the person cant be hired.'

Scott cites the example of a Florida hunter who had killed an animal out of season, was convicted of a felony, and was prevented from driving a bus. A DUI conviction 20 years ago could be another obstacle, he says.

'Its gotten out of hand,' he says. 'I think the industry needs a mentoring program to capture youth. Insurance requirements put us at a disadvantage. We cant hire until theyre 25 because of insurance costs. How many young people say, I cant wait to hit 25 so I can drive a bus. We really want 30-year-olds but by that time theyre doing something else or theyve probably failed at something else.'

The insurance factor

Michelle Silvestro of National Interstate Insurance Co. in Richfield,

Ohio, confirms that insurance plays a part in the recruitment of young drivers.

'I dont want to tell you who to hire, and legally I cant,' she says. 'You can hire Mickey Mouse. We look at the 25-to-65 age group. If you have a couple under or over that, well look at how you manage your driver pool as a whole and your experience.'

Driving a bus is not marketed as a great job, Silvestro says. 'Its seen

as something people do because they cant do something else. The way to change that is through education. Individuals should go to trade schools and talk about driving as a profession. Guidance counselors know whos going to college. Kids going to college arent going to drive a bus. You have to appeal to those who are potential drivers -- in trade schools and high schools.'

A key to attracting and retaining drivers revolves around the pay and

benefits offered. You have to be competitive,' Silvestro says.

She also emphasizes the importance of image, and says, 'With any worker, in any profession, mutual respect creates a situation where drivers want to work for you. The culture of operators is key. If the owners or drivers have a laissez faire attitude, you just get a driver, but you never get them to stay.'