Union-Endicott Schools-Transportation — Local services in Town of Union

RETIRED SCHOOL BUS DRIVER: hang on parents...this isn't going to be pretty... i drove for u e for 17 years...we get paid $16 plus per hour..a little more than a dollar more than ENTRY LEVEL mcdonalds employees...we are totally responsible for 40 to 50 kids at a time...just us and a mirror...unless you would rather we don't watch the road...the seats are high so we are not able to always see what is going on...especially with the little kids...we feel the weight intensely of being responsible for the physical and emotional well being of every student daily...the administration will not give us enough money to cover the costs of special busses for kids with emotional/behavior issues..i have written up kids numerous times, especially at CFJ, some as many as 20 times...action taken...called mom!...bullying ultimately must be dealt with by the principal...IGNORED!!! try doing our job maybe just as a ride along...have you ever slid down an icy hill sideways in a 30,000 lb bus with 40 kids onboard? your heart stops...these become OUR KIDS! we love them and are VERY protective of them...we would lay down our lives for them if we had to [some bus driers have, literally]...and in 17 years did i ever get a thank you from a parent?...too much responsibility, and too little appreciation....so the next time you are compelled to shoot your mouth off....educate your mind first...when a kid is missing EVERYTHING stops no one goes home until they are found...we go back and scour the area if need be...we are not some guy picked up off the street to fill a position...we are vetted,.. professionally trained.., drug tested ...and proud of what we do!! P.S....when you have to meet the bus to pick up your kid, it usually means that you are chronically late to the bus stop to get them...which tells your kid what,in their mind?....i am not done...just...

Bus drivers have more responsibility on their plates than most of you (who've never come close to driving a bus filled with kids) could ever comprehend! UE bus drivers have been NOTHING but AMAZING -- going above & beyond for my kids & ALL kids within their care each school day!! Drivers have stopped to allow one of my sons to get on sooner because it was downpouring -even though the bus stop was a mere 3 houses down the street from where he was at that moment... Drivers and bus aids have kept one of my sons belongings safe more than once- when they were left on the bus by mistake... my eldest son's driver this year makes sure to pause & look to see if he's on his way out of our front door/on his way to the bus stop (as yep...he sometimes runs a little behind). Every parent who relies on the transportation of a school bus- should be beyond grateful for what each & every one of those underpaid, underappreciated & overly criticized drivers do every day for your...

We’ve been using this company to transport my mother to and from the senior center. She’s supposed to be picked up at 9:30 in the morning on Monday, Wednesday Friday. This company is consistently late, they don’t answer the phone, and then when you call them when they’re 40 minutes late and ask them where they are. They seem as though they upset that you called. Some of the drivers are very, very nice and very very responsible so I’m not sure why they can’t be on time. And why they can’t respond to phone calls. I would think twice about using this company and if I can find another transportation company, we will use them instead. There’s no reason for this unprofessionalism especially when someone has to be somewhere at 10 AM. They’re scheduled for 930 and it’s 1012 in the morning and they’re still not here to pick her up and they’re not answering their business phone....