Drivers: Wake buses can reach dangerously hot levels

A bus driver shortage in Wake County means more routes and longer wait times for parents and students.

Drivers are now saying the conditions on those buses may be dangerous for them and for bus riders.

Drivers said they're operating buses for hours without AC working properly. A video taken by one bus driver showed the inside of one Wake bus was 100 degrees.

"It almost takes your breath away," said the driver, who asked to not be identified by WRAL News.

Drivers said the temperature inside the buses can climb to well over 100 degrees.

"With the heat index around 110, it is probably around 120 [degrees] on the buses," the driver said.

"It looked like 110 [degrees] to me on the red line. It is exhausting, number one. I mean, I was crying on my bus because it was just so hot," added another driver. "When I get off, my back is soaked, my butt is soaked and I am soaking wet from the heat."

Drivers said they're also concerned about the kids behind them.

"It's not just the drivers, the kids are even hotter in the back. I had all my windows open, and the kids still say they are hot -- because they are," said a driver.

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One driver said it's even gotten dangerous.

"She was shaking. At that point, she wasn't even sweating anymore," the driver recalled. "She ended up in the hospital, diagnosed with almost heat stroke."

Drivers said they've experienced headaches and exhaustion from the lack of air conditioning. One driver said they pulled over to try and cool off.

"They need to be maintained, and they are not maintaining them," a driver said.

On top of cooling problems, drivers and students are required to wear a mask on the bus because of the coronavirus pandemic. But, it gets so hot on the bus, drivers said that some students remove their masks.

"They pull them down. COVID cases are rising. We are bus drivers in a Petri dish," said a driver.

The drivers said what really upsets them is that the buses are equipped with air conditioners that could help the problem.

"Our air conditioners used to work and they quit working, and we can't get the county to tell us why they won't fix them," said a driver.

A spokesman for WCPSS said the school district has some buses that have legitimate problems with their air conditioning. The spokesman added that there is currently a shortage of bus maintenance workers, with 31 out of 80 positions vacant.

"We are actively recruiting those positions. In the meantime, we are working with a contractor to do air conditioner repairs. At this time, they are only able to provide us with one technician," the spokesman said in a statement.