It was not the "smooth as usual" opening Tuesday that Gloucester public school officials have traditionally reported, as staff and students adjusted to new bus routes, schedules and settings.

"It was a busy day. There were no major hindrances, just a lot of little things that kept everyone busy," said school division assistant superintendent John Hutchinson. One of those things included four separate bus schedules, which Hutchinson said are still being adjusted.

"We had some late buses. Roger (transportation director Roger Kelly) had a large turnover in staff this year. Also, the new bridge at Allmondsville has a bus restriction, so we have to do the pick up at one end or the other. That caught some parents off guard, although we attempted to notify everyone. In the end, everybody got to school and got home safely," Hutchinson said.

The new bus schedules are due to the efforts to serve the students displaced by the partial destruction of Page Mi...