Frustrations remain after bus company explains delays in Ambridge Area School District
AMBRIDGE, Pa. (KDKA) — Frustrated parents in the Ambridge Area School District are finally getting answers on why their kids' school buses are constantly running late for pick-up and drop-off.
Representatives from ABC Transit, which runs buses for the district, explained at Wednesday's school board meeting that it ran into a series of technical challenges that prevented it from putting together bus routes until the last minute.
The district's old software stopped working and it struggled to transition to updated software. In addition, it mistakenly was using a demo version of the software. It all meant the bus company was forced to start from scratch multiple times when putting together bus routes, Vice President of Operations at ABC Transit Kristen Anthony said on Wednesday.
"Once we realized how close it was to the start of school, our staff began to work basically around the clock," Anthony said. "We acknowledge the failure took place. We are apologizing for the things that happen to your families, to your children. We completely understand the frustration."
She explained the bus company is making several changes, including hiring staff to work exclusively on putting together routes for Ambridge.
ABC Transit, like other bus companies, faces a staffing shortage. Anthony said its office staff has been running routes. To attract drivers, ABC Transit has increased bonuses, including offering a daily safety and attendance bonus.
"I do think they are working diligently to improve this and I can see some improvement. We still have a ways to go. Again, I apologize to the community that this occurred," Ambridge Area School District Superintendent Joseph Pasquerilla said. "We continue to work with ABC through the shortage they have of bus drivers. We encourage people to apply."
Despite the answers, parents remain frustrated.
"I hope you guys get it together because it's not fair to a 6-year-old to have a 10-hour day. It's just not," one parent said Wednesday. "These elementary kids are losing an hour of school every day because their bus is an hour late."
One parent brought up how her child has been getting tardy notices despite the bus, not them, being late.
"Give me a break, you guys know the buses have been late," the parent said.
Countless parents have contacted KDKA-TV with stories about the buses being late or having other issues. One parent also brought up KDKA-TV's reporting from a month ago. KDKA-TV reported that William Metz, the school board's vice president, is also a manager at ABC Transit.
The district's solicitor said Metz has followed all ethical guidelines and abstained from related votes.
When KDKA-TV first approached Metz inside the office at ABC Transit, Metz said he was not William Metz. Only when we showed him his picture on the school district website did he admit to being Metz.
When we asked him at Wednesday's school board meeting why he misrepresented his identity, he did not respond.