LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — A Las Vegas valley grandmother is frustrated over late school buses. She says it’s causing headaches and potential safety issues.
It's a constant flow of text message for grandmother Luvina Ritz.
"This morning we got a text message that the bus would be 15 to 20 minutes late, so we walked my granddaughter back to school and it was about 20, 25 minutes late,” she said.
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She takes her granddaughter to the bus stop near Pioneer Avenue and Arville Street to get to Rex Bell Elementary School, but during the past two weeks the bus hasn't been on time.
"Not only are [we] standing here the whole time, if you're not here when the bus shows up, the bus leaves. But yet you're sitting there waiting and the bus is late,” Ritz said.
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Ritz says the bus is supposed to arrive at this stop at around 8:45 in the morning, but almost every day it doesn't arrive until about 9:30. When school lets out at around 3:20, the bus is late again and her granddaughter doesn't get home until about 30 to 45 minutes later.
"They eat lunch at like 11, 12 o'clock and they're on a bus until 4 to 4:40, so that's a long period before they're even getting a snack or anything,” she said.
Ritz says buses not arriving on time raises a concerning safety issue for the kids who use the stop.
"If a child is left at the bus stop, and the parents have gone to work, where does it leave that child? And [if] the bus doesn't show up or it's late, and parents assume the children are on the bus on their way to school,” Ritz said.
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In a statement CCSD said:
The Clark County School District is committed to providing safe, timely, efficient and courteous bus transportation services to every eligible student.
CCSD provides transportation to approximately 130,000 students daily on over 1,600 bus routes. When a concern is brought to the attention of the transportation department, staff members work quickly to address the matter and provide a reasonable resolution.
All manners are being examined to find ways to better communicate with parents in the instance a route is delayed. This school year, CCSD has launched the CCSD Onboard app which allows parents and students to monitor their bus route. Staff will continue to work by examining bus schedule routes and making possible changes if deemed necessary to provide improved arrival times.
If parents may have specific concerns regarding their student’s transportation needs they are urged to contact CCSD’s Transportation Department and speak with a representative by calling (702) 799-8111.
