Parent flags afternoon delays on Bus 4; district says improvements underway, penalties to start in September

A Forest Glen parent reported recurring afternoon delays on Bus 4 during public comment at the Sept. 22 Board of Education meeting, saying pickups in the morning are punctual but afternoon runs have been delayed 20–25 minutes on multiple days and one driver missed a stop and had to return. Magdalena Niewinski told the board she had been monitoring the route since the start of the year and that “the mornings are good” but afternoon service had experienced occasions where students waited until 3:45–4:50 p.m. Niewinski said she would continue to monitor the route and report back to the board. Superintendent Dr. McHugh acknowledged ongoing transportation challenges and said the district has seen “improvements 1 through 8” but that preschool and kindergarten routes have lagged. He confirmed the district implemented a new penalty structure for the transportation contractor, Safeway, and said the district gave the contractor a three‑day grace period in August because school and kindergarten schedules had only just started; penalties will be enacted for September. Dr. McHugh said Eric and Shannon Seidler have been working “extremely hard to get busing to greatness” and that the administration will hold Safeway to the new standards. No formal motion or board-level contract change was recorded during the meeting.