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December 18, 2007

Boston bus drivers leave 680 students without rides

BOSTON -- Providence isn't the only city having trouble getting students to and from school on its school buses.

Boston Mayor Thomas Menino is calling for a full investigation into an unusual number of absences among school bus drivers for the city.

About 680 children were left without a ride to school yesterday after 70 drivers called in sick or took personal days off.

School officials said the high number of absences did not appear to be any kind of organized protest by drivers.

In a statement, Menino called the situation "unacceptable and unfair" to children who missed school and parents who may been forced to miss a day of work.

School Superintendent Carol Johnson says she'll ask the city's school bus contractor to review every absence to ensure there was no abuse of sick leave or vacation time.

The president of the bus driver's union, Frantz Mendes, blames the city for not having enough standby drivers to cover the routes.

Some Providence students were stuck on school buses for hours trying to get home during Thursday's snow storm, and yesterday students were late for school when 30 buses had trouble climbing an icy hill near the bus yard.

Posted by Jack Perry  at 7:26 AM | Permalink

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janet | December 18, 2007 1:37 PM link

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