District 308 Staff, Parents Demand Safer Bus Service for Students

The complaints from parents over what they deem as unsafe transportation on Illinois Central buses for their children are a few complaints too many for officials.

“Am I getting more calls than I would like on some of these issues? Definitely,” said Angie Smith, District 308’s director of business services. “I don’t ever want a situation where a parent has to feel like putting a child on the bus is not a safe situation.”

The district contracts out about half of its transportation services, including its special education routes. Two years ago, Illinois Central handled the special education routes, and First Student, formerly Laidlaw, handled the remainder of the contracted routes. Last year the district entered into a contract with Illinois Central Bus to handle all the contracted routes.

Some parents have expressed concern that service on Illinois Central buses, especially for special needs students, is not what it should be, Smith said.

At Monday’s school board meeting, parent Margie Hartigan asked board members to “do whatever it takes to get rid of Illinois Central.”

“I’m fortunate enough to have my child on an Oswego 308 bus, but I have talked to so many parents who are not,” she said. “These drivers and aids are not caring for our children, especially the younger ones between ages 3 and 5. They’re not being paid attention to.”

After noticing unsafe conditions, parent Courtney Halverson said her children will no longer be riding an Illinois Central bus. She said in one instance, her child was not properly restrained on the bus.

“The excuses that came back from the driver and aid were very inexcusable,” she said. “I encourage you to relook at this and find something better.”

On Tuesday, District 308 officials met with Illinois Central to relay their concerns.

“We’re the customers,” Smith said. “We’ve told them our expectations and if we need to, we’ll bring some of those services back in-house to better control the situation. From my standpoint, we expect to see an improvement in service. I don’t want to be in a position where I’m at a board meeting or having my phone flooded with calls that parents aren’t happy.”

A woman who did not give her name at Illinois Central School Bus said Wednesday the company has been in contact with District 308 officials and would give no further comment.

Smith said buses need to be properly equipped for each child they are carrying.

“Sometimes its wheelchairs, sometimes its safety seats. All drivers need to know what’s required for each individual child. And that’s not a ‘sometimes.’ It’s an ‘every single time’,” she said. “If the situation doesn’t change, we’ll look at ways to get better control.”