School bus app glitch leads to ‘serious incident’

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This article was published 05/09/2024 (577 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Fort Richmond families and their child-care provider want answers after young children were dropped off at the wrong bus stops, including one point on Pembina Highway, without an adult to greet them.

Transit troubles made the first day of school “an absolute nightmare,” Deepa Raghavan, executive director of Epiphany Children’s Centre, said.

“There were nine kids that we were looking for. It was horrifying.”

Raghavan said she was waiting for a group of children to get off the bus outside her daycare shortly after 4 p.m. Wednesday.

A single child arrived at 4:19 p.m., she said, adding panic ensued until all of the children — including a lone six-year-old who was dropped off in tears on Pembina Highway — were safely accounted for by 5:30 p.m.

The Pembina Trails School Division introduced a new app, MyRide K-12, to communicate busing schedules ahead of the 2024-25 school year.

Incorrect and incomplete scheduling information on student profiles has caused confusion among caregivers and forced some to make last-minute arrangements to get their kids to and from school.

Helena Nicholson said she obtained verbal and written confirmation her five- and seven-year-olds would be driven to daycare despite the app indicating their drop-off point was their home.

Shortly after the final bell rang, she received a call from a neighbour who happened to see the youngsters at the end of their street.

“They are not equipped to be home alone. They are not equipped to be dropped off on a street without a parent or guardian. They’re not equipped to even understand what’s happening,” Nicholson, whose children attend Grade 1 and 2 at École St. Avila, said.

The mother of two said she is relieved her neighbour took care of the kids and appalled by the bus driver’s behaviour.

Nicholson said the driver forced students to exit at the wrong stops and that she has since learned students were crying and arguing with the employee aboard the bus as he made his incorrect rounds.

“It’s a traumatic start to the school year,” she said, adding she wants the man to be held accountable for the situation and the division to be more proactive about its transportation schedules next year.

Pembina Trails administration indicated division staff members immediately contacted the affected families and daycare upon learning of eight mistaken drop-offs on Wednesday.

“We are grateful that all the children were safe, and we are deeply sorry this happened. We sincerely apologize and are committed to preventing such incidents in the future,” Supt. Shelley Amos said in a written statement Thursday.

Amos said a review of the “extremely serious incident,” including an evaluation of internal communication practices, is underway.

maggie.macintosh@freepress.mb.ca