Girl 2 Hours Late on 1st Day of School Due to Lost Bus Driver

A Delaware mother is speaking out after she says her daughter’s school bus driver was late and got lost on the first day of classes Monday.

Katarina Paveza told NBC10 she was nearly two hours late for her first day at Dickinson High School in Wilmington, Delaware.

“It’s the first day of my new school and new program,” Katarina said.

The Red Clay School District has the Advanced Student Transportation Company handle its bussing for some students, including Katarina. Katarina says the bus was a half hour late picking her up in Pike Creek Monday morning. At that point parents of other kids on the route had taken them to school believing the bus wasn’t coming and only one other child was on board. Once she got on, Katarina says it got even worse. 

“I was thinking, ‘Does this bus driver know where she’s going?’” Katarina said. “She would keep pulling over and looking down. I think she was looking down on the GPS or something.”

Katarina then called her mother, Maya Paveza.

“She said, ‘We’re still on the bus mommy,’” Paveza told NBC10. “And I said, ‘Where are you?’ She said, ‘Near Pennsylvania.’”

Realizing the bus wasn’t anywhere near the school, Paveza called the driver.

“I said, ‘Are you lost? I’ll come and guide if you want,’” Paveza said. “And she said, ‘No, I’m okay.’”

Paveza didn’t believe the driver however and had her daughter tell her exactly where they were. Paveza finally tracked the bus down and took Katarina to school herself, nearly two hours after classes began.

Officials with the Red Clay School District confirmed the bus driver was lost. They said they are working with the bus company to make sure the driver knows her route going forward. NBC10 also reached out to Advanced Student Transportation. While we have not yet heard back from them, Paveza says she spoke with a representative on the phone.

“The dispatcher was yelling and arguing with me saying, ‘Hey, it’s the first day of school, things happen. We’re running the route with her now,’” Paveza said. “Shouldn’t you have done that ahead of time?!”

Paveza says she will discuss a new transportation plan with her daughter for Tuesday.

“We don’t want our child on that bus again,” Paveza said. “We don’t want her with this driver.”