CASTLE ROCK, Colo. — A relief school bus driver for Douglas County schools is no longer working for the district after he dropped students off at the wrong stop Monday afternoon, abandoning dozens of children miles from their homes.
The male bus driver was substituting for the regular driver of Route #253 in Castle Rock when he failed to “follow protocol,” pulled the bus over short of the third stop on the 12-stop route, and abandoned more than 40 students at the intersection of E Wolfensberger Rd. and Auburn Dr.
“I get a call from a complete stranger stating that she has my children, and that is just about every parent's worst nightmare,” said parent Ashley Stark. “A complete stranger brought my children home.”
Kids told parents that the bus driver drove around erratically for an hour after leaving Clear Sky Elementary.
“He proceeded to drive around and pass all of the children's stops. So that really scared them. A lot of the kids were saying, you know, I felt like I was being kidnapped,” Stark told Denver7.
Castle Rock
Bus driver who dropped kids off at wrong stop said he 'could have done better'
In an email to parents, Rich Cosgrove, chief operations officer for the Douglas County School District, said:
“On the third stop on Monday afternoon, the bus stopped just short of the usual location, leading to some confusion. At that time, the remaining 40 students on the bus all exited, with many getting off at the wrong bus stop.”
Cosgrove said the driver should have called DCSD transportation dispatch after the children exited the bus, but he ‘did not follow protocol’.
The Douglas County School District confirms that the driver is no longer employed with the district.
Hear from the bus driver in the video player below:
Parents like Stark are now demanding full transparency, including video footage of Monday’s incident.
“The kids have been really brave throughout this, but we also have to be their voice. They're little, and we're gonna do whatever we can to get to the bottom of it,” said Stark.
Cosgrove said the Castle Rock Police Department is investigating the incident and plans to release video of the bus ride once the investigation is complete.
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