Detroit graduates largest single class of bus drivers after wage hike
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April 3, 2026, 6:04 a.m. ET
The Detroit Department of Transportation kicked off the month with 52 new bus drivers − its largest single class yet following a wage boost last fall.
The men and women, clad in light blue and black uniforms emblazoned with DDOT patches, went through several weeks of training on the road and in the classroom before their graduation ceremony on Thursday, April 2, at the Northwest Activities Center. That morning, the room was energized and filled with the newly minted drivers, their loved ones and city transit officials. Detroit Mayor Mary Sheffield made a brief appearance, too, congratulating the group for overcoming challenges, such as homelessness, to get to where they are. She addressed the grads as her administration makes the case for a 14% budget increase − including the competitive wage boosts − for the 2027 fiscal year.
It was a big day for graduate Shantinique Grant. The 32-year-old Detroiter and mom of two had been catching the bus for a while. Now, she’ll drive one.
It’s something she never imagined would happen. As a Type 1 diabetic, she’s been in and out of the hospital, but that hasn’t stopped her.
“I had to feed my family. I’m just trying to secure my family and I got a career for them. I got a career for my family,” she said through tears.
Meanwhile, Tiera Bennett traded in driving semi-trucks for buses. Though she’ll earn less in her new role, she said she switched to give back to the community and to be in community, too.
“It’s a difference from hauling materials than actually hauling people,” said Bennett, 37, of Detroit.
The class started off in December with over 80 students, among whom more than 50 have graduated to become bus drivers, Robert Cramer, DDOT executive director of transit, estimated. Previous classes started off with 30 to 60 and graduated 20 to 40 drivers. The new grads bring the total drivers up to 550. Last year, DDOT hovered around 500 despite starting and graduating several classes.
“Because of the size of this class and with the new union contracts, we’re seeing a lot better retention,” Cramer told the Free Press.
Around the time DDOT was recruiting for the class, the department and the bus driver’s union, Amalgamated Transit Union Local 26, negotiated a new contract that increased wages by about $6.
The contract raised starting pay from $19.56 to $25.38, bringing the pay closer to the wages at other transportation providers. The maximum hourly pay increased from $26.18 to $32.18. Quarterly incentives − $1,500 for attendance and $500 for avoiding preventable crashes − make the earning potential all the more competitive, Cramer said.
“There’s a lot of people that are seeing that as a wage that’s career-based,” he said.
Joel Batterman, campaigns manager for Transportation Riders United, a nonprofit transit advocacy group, called the graduation “great news.”
A shortage of drivers due to low wages has been a “major impediment” to restoring DDOT service following the COVID-19 pandemic, Batterman said.
“We’re very hopeful that the new union contracts, with competitive wages, will encourage more drivers to stay at DDOT, and allow the agency to continue to expand service and unlock more opportunities for Detroiters,” he said in an email to the Free Press, adding that the mayor’s proposed budget includes a “major boost” for DDOT funding.
Sheffield’s proposed 14% increase for DDOT would bring its budget to $238 million. During her first State of the City address this week, she announced a new program for K-12 students to ride the bus for free and highlighted plans to add 175 new benches and upgrade 100 bus shelters.
DDOT tracked more than a million riders in January, according to a performance dashboard.
Reach reporter Nushrat Rahman at [email protected].
