Enough is Enough: The BPS Transportation Crisis is Stealing Our Children’s Future & Why BPS Transportation is a Documented Disaster



Enough is Enough: The BPS Transportation Crisis is Stealing Our Children’s Future & Why BPS Transportation is a Documented Disaster

For a decade, I’ve stood at bus stops in South Boston. What began as "first-week jitters" in K2 has devolved into a permanent, systemic breakdown. This past Tuesday, I stood before the City Council at the Emergency Hearing on BPS Transportation to testify to this reality. But I haven't just been vocal this week; I have been a persistent voice for many years, demanding that BPS stop treating our children as an afterthought.

No More Broken Promises

In October, during Mayor Wu’s "State of the Schools" address, the message from the city was one of progress. But for the parents on the ground, the reality is far different. No more broken promises. Our children need to be in school on time, not hours late. It is completely unacceptable that in 2026, we are still hearing the same excuses we heard in 2018. A "State of the Schools" that doesn't include a functional, safe way for students to actually get to those schools is a failure of leadership.

A Decade of Documented Neglect

I haven’t just been "noticing" the crisis—I’ve been recording it. My logs go back to 2018, documenting a child navigating Autism, ADHD, and Anxiety who has been treated as an afterthought for seven consecutive years.

  • The Safety Gap: I have records of "No Monitor" calls dating back to November 2018. This neglect led to a concussion in 3rd grade and my son fleeing a bus into traffic in 4th grade after being assaulted with a shoe.

  • The Parent Tax: When the bus skips a stop or detours to East Boston, parents pay. We pay in out-of-pocket Lyft fees, in professional risk at our jobs, and in the sheer stress of wondering where our children are while "GPS is down."

  • The Ghost Bus: As I told WHDH, WCVB, and the Boston Herald, new apps like "Zum" haven't fixed the old problems. My son is still being marked as a "No Show" while sitting on the bus, and "mechanical issues" are still used as a blanket excuse for 3-hour delays.

A Call for a Total Overhaul

I am calling on City Hall to perform a complete overhaul of BPS Transportation. Our children should not be an afterthought to this system.

It is time to move beyond apologies and implementation "pilots." We need accountability with teeth: * Fines for Failure: It is time to start fining the department or contractors when a bus is uncovered or chronically late.

  • Zero Tolerance: If a monitor is legally required, the bus should not move without one—and the city should be held financially liable for every minute of education lost.

Our Demands: Accountability, Not Excuses

My son is finishing his final year at the Dever, and the problems are identical to his first day of school. We are demanding:

  1. An Independent Audit: Follow the money. Why aren't there monitors on the buses? Why are the drivers reporting on time?

  2. Real-Time Transparency: If I can track a pizza, I should be able to track my child. No more "GPS blackouts."

  3. A Reimbursement Fund: BPS must foot the bill for the private travel families are forced to fund when the system fails.

The Bottom Line

Our children cannot learn if they cannot get to school. The news cameras are rolling and the receipts are in.

City Hall: The ball is in your court. Stop the broken promises. Overhaul the system, or answer to the parents who have been waiting for a decade.

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