Edmond Bus Driver Mistake Part Of A Larger Problem

Edmond Public School leaders apologized to parents after a school bus took a wrong turn on Thursday afternoon. The bus driver took a wrong turn and had to pull the bus into a parking lot. Edmond Public Schools said this is one example of a bigger problem.

Parent Ronica Thorp was not happy on Thursday. Thorp told a story on a Facebook Live video that she was frustrated to report. 

“My son, over an hour late home,” Thorp said.

Thorp's son was on an Edmond school bus that had to make an unplanned stop.

“It was a bus driver’s first time to drive this route alone.” 

Edmond Public Schools spokesperson Susan Parks-Schlepp said the driver made a wrong turn.

“That quickly upset children,” Parks-Schlepp said. 

Children called their parents, even the police. All showed up at an Edmond Crest Foods parking lot where the bus driver stopped with a lot of questions and concerns.

“It was a bit chaotic out there,” Parks-Schlepp said. “This was a frustrating situation for everybody. We wish that it did not happen.”

The problem extends beyond this incident.

“It’s tough right now,” Parks-Schlepp said.

Schools can’t find drivers – and they need them badly.

“We transport about 11,000 students,” Parks-Schlepp said. “We’re the second-highest ridership in the state.”

A Hop Skip Drive Report shows 88 percent of schools nationwide struggle to fill the seat behind the school bus wheel.

“We’ve had to put a lot of things in place to get drivers,” Parks-Schlepp said. 

Parks-Schlepp said Edmond Public Schools increased pay and hired a recruiter. It works for a period, Parks-Schlepp said.

“And then it’ll drop off again,” she said.

Right now, all the districts can do is tell parents to be patient while they find a different gear toward fixing this roadblock between school and home.

“There will continue to be delays until we can get more bus drivers,” Parks-Schlepp said.

Edmond Public Schools also needs more help inside its dispatch office. Anyone who would like to be part of the solution and become a bus driver can find more information here.