BATON ROUGE — East Baton Rouge Parish students who are riding the bus for the first day of school on Thursday can expect some changes on their way to school.

Last year several issues within the bus system caused drivers to go on strike leading to a day of classes being canceled. One reason was several buses did not have air conditioning.

Office clerk and occasional bus driver Lee Cosey said he believes this year will be better than last year.

“Having a more comfortable bus makes a happy driver. A happy driver makes happy kids, which ultimately makes happy parents,” Cosey said.

Administrative Director of Transportation Rob Howle said all 103 buses being used will have air conditioning, and all buses with a route will have a tablet. He said they have upgraded their route system making it easier for parents using the "Where's the Bus" app.

Howle said each student is not only attached to a bus but also to their driver.

“So when the driver clocks in, even if they are on a different bus they put in their original route number in here and click start, and all the students that were tracking the previous bus is now tracking the new bus that the driver is on,” Howle said.

Transportation supervisor Andy Chapman said this year will be a better experience for everyone.

"We're going to give better customer service to the parents as far as helping them find bus routes, as far as making adjustments. Our drivers will give better customer service to the children and the buses. We're on better buses this year so you can expect that," Chapman said.