JCPS cancels 2 days of school as they work on ‘disaster’ bus situation

By Jennifer Osting, Alex Suckow

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    LOUISVILLE, Kentucky (WLKY) — Jefferson County Public Schools has canceled classes for the remainder of the week amid a bus “disaster.”

The district of 96, 000 kids scattered school start times and changed bus routes this year to try and prevent bus issues. They worked on the plan for months.

But on Wednesday, the first day of school, the last student didn’t get dropped off until 9:58 p.m. Parents said some children were dropped off in the wrong place.

While they work to fix some issues, the district decided to call of school for Thursday and Friday.

JCPS Spokesperson Carolyn Callahan says the days will be treated like traditional snow days. Extracurricular activities are canceled as well.

Superintendent Dr. Marty Pollio issued a video apology for what he called a “transportation disaster.”

“I know how unnerving and unsettling that must’ve been for even our youngest students and all of our students, and we truly apologize to you,” he said.

He said they are going to take the next four days to work on the errors.

“I have to make sure our kids are safe and we will not have a repeat of what happened. And we will not be in school until I know we can get kids home safely,” he said.

LMPD says “just a few” missing children were reported during this incident, but all were found prior to the actual report-taking process.

Members from the board of education issued statements saying the situation was unacceptable and calling for reviews and accountability of what happened.

Pollio said all bus routes and bus stops will be reviewed for efficiency. They’ll be paying bus drivers to work extra days to practice their routes. their new routes.

He also said they’ll be improving communication structures between families and schools and they’re going to “dramatically increase” their call center, 485-RIDE, for the next four days to answer questions.

Bus union president, John Stovall, said the issues can be attributed to the artificial intelligence system used to design the route: AlphaRoute.

He said a dozen bus drivers either quit or self demoted to another position in the district.

He also said he believes the district should cancels classes next week as well to resolve the problem.

As these next few days could pose challenges for parents, Mayor Craig Greenberg said on social media, “I hope that businesses and employers will work with parents and caretakers to provide as much flexibility as possible as they work to adjust their schedules. Metro is here to help in any way we can.”

Some Kentucky lawmakers announced they will re-file a bill where all students by law would a have the right to attend their neighborhood schools. They are also calling for a commission to evaluate splitting up JCPS.

UPS has also agreed to meet with JCPS about offering logistical advice. Details about when the two will meet have not been released.

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