Bus Driver Refuses to Let Kids off Bus

[Rageaholic]

This happened in Arizona

Apparently, the kids were being horrible so this guy refuses to let them off the bus, even as parents were banging on the door. He drove back to the school.

I don't doubt that the kids were being horrible, but his actions cross a line. He should not work with children.

[TheHuckster]

Growing up I was witness to at least two instances of bus drivers losing their patience, one of which undoubtedly lead to either a resignation or termination because after her final profanity-laden tirade, the next day we had a new driver. It's a very stressful job where not only are you driving this large vehicle that nobody wants to get behind (thus making yielding to traffic challenging) but while you're trying to concentrate on the road there's a ton of kids screaming behind you. Yes, there's usually a monitor responsible for them, but it can still be nerve-wracking. And monitors can barely do anything, and the kids know it. They are virtually powerless besides reporting the kids to their school or parents.

Not that I'm giving this guy a pass. He's definitely not up for the job if the passengers' behavior makes him snap, but this kind of incident is not unheard of.

[Aragarthiel]

I know kids can be horrible on buses, I rode one for all but a year of my 12 years of school. But that was wrong. Not to mention, Arizona's been HOT lately, and I know from experience that most school buses there are not air conditioned. Meaning not only were these kids riding in a hot bus the whole way there, they were locked in and forced to ride the hot bus the whole way back. This particular district is in a rather rural area, meaning for some kids, this could be a 30-45 minute ride on a good day.

I'm not sure about the laws there (it's been a decade since I lived there), but that's pretty damn close to kidnapping.

[Andara Bledin]

I'm pretty sure at that point, the driver could be brought up on charges of kidnapping.

[Kheldarson]

We had a similar incident. But the bus driver pulled over and stopped until things were resolved (kids were lighting things on fire, including the bus seats). And she kept the school informed.

[TheHuckster]

Yikes. If kids are lighting stuff on fire, I'd say it's time to call the fire department and police ASAP. Fires can quickly get out of control.

[wolfie]

Back when I was in elementary school, I was already somewhat mechanically inclined. If I'd been one of the kids on that bus when the driver refused to let anyone out, the emergency exit (designed, after all, to be easy to open in an emergency) would have been open in seconds.

Back in the day, the only automation on an emergency exit was an alarm that would trigger as soon as the handle was moved out of "safe". I wonder what gizmos are on them now - automatically call 911 when the exit is opened, interlock to shut down the engine (or at least lock the transmission in "park" if the bus has an automatic) to keep it from being driven with the emergency exit open, etc.

[Aragarthiel]

I wonder what gizmos are on them now

The one I was on in high school (5 or so years ago) didn't even really have an alarm, just a buzzer that went off up by the driver. That bus was only a few years old at the time. And the ceiling exits were often used as ventilation in really hot weather, so they tended to break,and they never had an alarm for that reason.

I remember one of the window exits on the bus was super sensitive and if you so much as brushed the little red handle, the buzzer would go off. Only high schoolers who could be conscious of the handle and trusted not to goof off in the seat were allowed to sit there.

[HYHYBT]

Hooking the emergency exit handle to the transmission so it would throw the bus into park automatically is a terrible idea.