Edmond Bus Driver’s Mistake Leaves Two Kindergartners at Wrong Bus Stop

EDMOND, Okla. –

An Edmond family experienced a terrifying moment when a school bus driver dropped their children off at the wrong bus stop.

Kelly Mulholland said she’s heard plenty of similar stories from other parents in the district.

Mulholland’s son Hayden and her boyfriend’s daughter started school and tried riding the bus for the first time.

“We’re really lucky to live in the neighborhood that we do,” Mulholland said.

A first experience that left a bad taste in Mulholland’s mouth for obvious reasons.

“Definitely not a good first impression,” Mulholland said. “They got on the right bus. Procedures weren’t followed and they got off on the wrong stop.”

For about an hour, neither Mulholland nor Edmond School Transportation knew where these two five-year-olds were.

“And it’s 104, 105 degrees,” Mulholland said.

A man’s doorbell camera caught Hayden looking for his mom.

“They would take turns ringing doorbells,” Mulholland said. “One of them would keep watch.”

A neighbor took the kids inside about a mile from their home.

“Even a minute feels like a lifetime when you don’t know where your kids are at,” Mulholland said.

The kids’ phone numbers and addresses are on their backpacks for bus drivers to check.

“He just didn’t check them,” Mulholland said.

Last March, an Edmond driver took a wrong turn forcing parents to pick up their kids in a grocery store parking lot.

“This is not an isolated incident,” Mulholland said.

Parents like Mulholland believe more needs to be done before these mistakes become irreversible.

“This definitely could have been a different story than it is,” Mulholland said. “When you’re dealing with people’s kids. There’s no room for error.”

An Edmond Public Schools spokesperson said they addressed this issue and spoke to the family. To prevent this issue the district said, “Younger students either have a wristband or a tag on their backpack identifying their bus to help make sure they get on the correct bus. The drivers have also received updated printouts of which students get off at each stop and they have been reminded to individually check each student as they exit the bus.”