EDMONTON — School division officials west of Edmonton have confirmed a school bus driver is no longer on the job after students on the bus reported the driver had been texting while driving.
Brian Leadbetter with Parkland School Division said the driver used a cellphone while driving once in April and a second time this fall.
However, Leadbetter wouldn’t say if the driver was fired or stepped aside on her own.
Parent Kim Johnson says she had reported her concerns about the bus driver last fall and was told the school division would install cameras on the buses.
Then, her kids noted when the driver was using the phone, and dates and times were provided to school officials.
Johnson wanted the driver fired, but says when nothing was done, she went to the division’s superintendent.
She was not happy with the response, so she had her children change bus routes.
“It’s been going on for about a year, I can’t trust her,” Johnson said of the bus driver.
“I think (the school division) needs to set an example to others, that this is not acceptable.”
Parkland School Division policy states that: “Cell phones are to be used for emergency use only. Repeated use while the bus is in motion is not an acceptable practice.”