Is it right for schoolbus driver to drop off & ride away

amother

Tue, Jan 24 2012, 11:26 pm

Ive been having this debate with neighbors & now with the bus driver. Is the bus driver supposed to wait until a parent or adult comes to get the kid off the bus (or until the kid gets into the house)? I asked one bus driver why he just drops off & rides away & he said he feels that the parents know what time he'll be there every day & if they don't seem to care that they're late & their child will be coming off the bus alone then he (the driver) doesn't have to worry either!

Ive seen drivers in my area drop off preschool or elementary kids & just drive off while the kid is still standing on the sidewalk or they allow strangers or neighbors to take the kid... is that right? Should the driver take be responsible to take the kid back to school?

de_goldy

Tue, Jan 24 2012, 11:33 pm

Well why is no one waiting for the child?

I imagine if it's a parent that is usually responsible and outside at the proper time, the driver wouldn't leave that child if one day the parent wan't there. But some parents don't seem to be concerned with their children's safety and would probably be more annoyed if the driver took the kid back to school.

Having said that, I could never leave a child alone not knowing if they had a way to get into their house or if anyone was home. But I am not a bus driver.

yo'ma

Wed, Jan 25 2012, 6:18 am

It depends how old the child is. In NY when I lived there, the bus driver told me they are not allowed to drive away unless an adult is there for 5 and under, but otherwise they're allowed to and why should the other kids be late because of this? I'm not saying it's right or safe, but that's the way it is.

Last edited by yo'ma on Wed, Jan 25 2012, 7:18 am; edited 1 time in total

33055

Wed, Jan 25 2012, 6:28 am

yo'ma wrote:

It depends how old the driver is. In NY when I lived there, the bus driver told me they are not allowed to drive away unless an adult is there for 5 and under, but otherwise they're allowed to and why should the other kids be late because of this? I'm not saying it's right or safe, but that's the way it is.

Why should the driver's age matter?

overthehill

Wed, Jan 25 2012, 6:42 am

It is your job as a parent to be ready and outside when your child's bus comes.

Its not the bus drivers job to come, beep, and wait for you to get your little shaifele, all the while causing traffic to back up, because well, you werent waiting outside and were busy shmoozing on the phone and making supper.

The same way those of us who have corner bustops know we must be outside for the bus at 4:17 PM for example, you must be outside too.

The utter selfishness of some parents causes traffic jams and other people on the street to be late for whatever THEY have to get to.

33055

Wed, Jan 25 2012, 6:52 am

overthehill wrote:

I drop my son off to learn in the morning. On the way back, there is one particular mom who is never ready, The bus driver waits with his red lights on. The time could be two, three and four minutes while I cannot pass. This is just as annoying to me especially as it occurs in the a.m. This is almost every morning that I drive my son.

The moms and the little shaifelas should be more considerate in the a.m. also.

yo'ma

Wed, Jan 25 2012, 7:17 am

Squishy wrote:

yo'ma wrote:

Why should the driver's age matter?

Because if he's a veteran driver he would know the old laws, but if there are new laws, he may not be up to date. What

oops

3 little 1s

Wed, Jan 25 2012, 7:32 am

I agree parents should be there, and unfortunately I can understand annoyance at repeat offenders.

I think if a parent is consistantly late, it is not unreasonable to ask if that parent can make other arrangements. (maybe one of the mothers who is not in a rush wont mind waiting with her child for a minute or two...maybe she can arrange an older child to walk the child home etc).

Generally though, if a mother who is not normally late, and makes sure her child is never left waiting...gets stuck shock

...of course she should try and make similar arrangements, but I think a driver should wait one or two minutes to ensure the child is safe.

ora_43

Wed, Jan 25 2012, 8:00 am

I think it'd be a huge headache for everyone if drivers had to wait for parents. Drivers tend to have at least a dozen stops, each stop will have at least one parent who's chronically late, or at the very least half the stops will have one parent per day who's late "just this once." And you'll end up with kids spending an hour or more on the bus, parents waiting at the stop for ages with no idea when the bus will come on any given day, and a driver who's late to his next job.

Driving younger kids back to school sounds like a good idea, but it's not the kind of thing a driver can just do for himself. There'd need to be a whole system set up, the parents would need to know that this is what happens, there would need to be teachers back and school waiting just in case some kid wasn't picked up, and the driver would need to be paid for his extra time, which could come out to a lot if the new system would put him at risk of missing a later job.

Personally I'd prefer that if I were running late, the driver would just leave my (younger) child with another parent. Not with any random adult, of course, but with another child and their family, sure. That's the unofficial system at the local gan and it's very convenient.

sarahd

Wed, Jan 25 2012, 9:01 am

Well, it really upsets me that the bus driver, who is supposed to be here at 14:14 but usually doesn't come till at least 14:20, will sometimes get here at 14:10 or earlier, drop off my four year old and drive away without even honking to alert me. My kid is the last stop, so he isn't delaying anyone and there are seldom any cars backed up behind him.

sky

Wed, Jan 25 2012, 9:02 am

I think its the parents responsibiltiy to be outside.
I think the rule in some schools in Lakewood is that if a parent is not outside for a 5 year old they are brought back to school and the parent is called.
My son is dropped off at the corner, 2 doors from my house. I don't think I can expect the bus driver to wait until he gets to the front door. He can't even see it from the corner.
If a busdriver has to wait for each child to get into the house (for a slow 5 year old that can be 4+ minutes) how is it fair to the other children on the bus that will be getting home so much later.

chocolate chips

Wed, Jan 25 2012, 11:52 am

I don't think its safe but it is also not the drivers problem.

I know some schools/drivers have a rule that the parents must come take the kid off the bus or the bus will go with the kid still on it and take her back to school (has happened to someone I know).

I do see some buses stopping on the corner and letting the kids off or stopping opposite the house and letting kids off and driving away but only with older kids who know the number locks or can reach the bell (Im talking 8 and up at least!)

On the other hand the parents do know what time they should be there, or what time frame and why should other parents have to wait for their kids longer because one parent at the first stop took her time to come therefore the others have to wait longer. The driver needs to be at each stop in the time frame each parent is given. Mothers/fathers not coming to get their kid off the bus or not being home makes this whole route take longer.

As a side point I know several buses that the teacher on the bus has the cell number of each parent in order of the bus route and either calls when they are nearby or calls if they are not coming out.

Marion

Wed, Jan 25 2012, 12:14 pm

Here the driver (gan age kids) is not allowed to just drop off the kids UNLESS THE PARENT SIGNS A WAIVER specifically allowing it. I've been known to take other people's kids off the bus on Fridays so the driver doesn't have to wait for them. This year DS#1 is allowed to come home himself on Friday (the rest of the week he is escorted from the bus to his afternoon program) simply because I can't physically be in three places at once and there is someone else in the house to let him in when he arrives if I'm not there. But I just can't spend 20 minutes waiting for the bus when I have 2 other kids to pick up in the same half hour time frame.

Barbara

Wed, Jan 25 2012, 12:15 pm

sky wrote:

That's the rule at our school as well, except that there is a late bus for older kids, so the little kids can take that home as well.

I cringe to think of drop-off if the bus drivers waited for every late parent. Some parents may be 30 seconds late, but others could be 5, 10 or more minutes late. Then you have other parents worried about where their kids are, kids who are restless (or need the restroom), drivers who are late for other routes or who are entitled to overtime. And watching them until they get home ... raise your hand if you don't think that people would take advantage of THAT! Besides, at our stop (for example), there can be 7 to 10 kids getting off, walking in several different directions. Is the driver supposed to monitor all of them? Even if one turns a corner?

Look, things happen, parents are late. If your child is not the only one getting off at the stop, you should arrange for other parents, or older kids, to cover if you're delayed. Obviously, it will be reciprocal. If your child is the only one at the stop, then you need to call the school when you're delayed and ask them to tell your child to get off with a friend (whose parent or caregiver agrees) until you can get there.

timeout

Wed, Jan 25 2012, 1:56 pm

Just yesterday this came up...... my daughter who is 7 goes on varsity and came off the bus crying that the busdriver was screaming at all the kids. Most of the girls on the bus are told by there parents to walk home from wherever and nobody is waiting. Well this new busdriver wasn't letting the kids off the bus alone, the old busdriver had.

I have 3 kids K'H with 3 different buses at different times and places, B'H I manage not only to be at the bus stops but early in case the driver is "10" minutes late.

Being at bus stops should be like a JOB u wouldn't be late for that isn't it doubly important to be there for your kids, and when kids get off on there own alot ................... anything can happen!