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Mother says bus for special needs sons arrives after school begins

Posted at 11:30 PM, Sep 20, 2016
and last updated 2016-09-20 23:30:04-04

RICHMOND, Va. -- Since the start of the school year, Justin Zeh has been walking his two sons to and from Blackwell Elementary every day.

The Richmond family said they have been dealing with transportation issues with Richmond Public Schools.

“It’s unacceptable,” said mother Julie Zeh.

She said her 8-year-old son Tyler and 5-year-old son Jacen are supposed to catch a ride on the school bus each morning.

However, last week, Julie said the bus didn’t arrive until 9:22, which is nearly a half hour after school starts.

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The family said they’re told the bus is supposed to arrive at 8:48 a.m.

“It made us feel like we were singled out almost, and almost discriminated against,” said Zeh, “because this bus only carries children that have individualized education plans and they’re late every day.”

Julie said she’s been contacting the school for days about the issue.

“Today I asked to speak with the supervisor, and what she told me was I’m sorry the bus that picks up your children goes to Amelia Street School first and there are no other drivers to take her spot,” said Zeh.

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Julie and her family then reached out to the CBS 6 Problem Solvers.

CBS 6 reached out to the school system to ask why the bus was late.

"Our transportation department has confirmed that the parent contacted management this morning regarding this issue and was told that it would be resolved no later than this Friday. Since then, this bus route has been divided and an additional bus driver has been assigned to it,” said spokeswoman Kenita Bowers in a statement.

Bowers also said this particular bus route is longer than desired and adding an additional bus driver should alleviate the challenges of picking up students on time.

CBS 6 News is working for you. Click here to email a tip to the CBS 6 Problem Solvers. Be sure to leave us your name, phone number and detailed description of the problem. You can also leave a message by calling 804-254-3672.

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