Viral video shows RTD driver skipping teens at Aurora bus stop
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A viral video on TikTok with over 2 million views shows an RTD driver barreling past a bus stop at East Montview Boulevard and Galena Street, leaving behind two teenaged boys.
The incidents happened between March 13 and 14. The boys were on their way back home in Aurora from school in Denver.
“I could not believe that an adult would act this way,” said Jessie Chandler, mom and aunt of the boys. “Just to completely pass them by, I just found that to be completely unacceptable.”
The boys, ages 14 and 16, said the day before the driver kicked them off of the bus because they used a bus transfer instead of paying the fare with cash. The boys were transferring to a different bus. The teens had only started riding the bus three weeks earlier.
“The bus driver said something to the effect of ‘No, you guys need to give me a dollar to get on the bus,’ and they explained to her ‘We don’t have a dollar,’ and she said ‘No dollar, no ride,’ and proceeded to kick my kids off the bus,” Chandler told CBS News Colorado.
The next day, Chandler decided to meet up with kids at the stop to try and speak to the driver and get her side of the story. But as she was waiting at the bus stop with her camera rolling, that’s when Chandler instead caught the driver completely ignoring the teens at the bus stop. Chandler then followed the bus to a second stop hoping to confront the driver about what happened. She believes the bus driver was bullying her kids.
“What if something had happened to them waiting?” said Chandler. “There is no good excuse for children to be left out just trying to get home safe.”
CBS News Colorado reached out to RTD about the incident, and Tina Jaquez, an RTD spokesperson sent a statement saying , “RTD is aware of the incident that happened March 15 involving two customers waiting at the bus stop at Montview and Galena. An RTD street supervisor has met with the bus operator and the mother of the customers. RTD will follow its established procedures and consider coaching, training or corrective action for the operator, pending the outcome of a comprehensive internal investigation. The operator has been instructed not to pass the stop again to prevent any repeat incidents.”
Chandler has since filed two complaints with RTD on the incident. She’s also spoken with the driver’s supervisor. CBS News Colorado asked Jaquez whether the driver will face repercussions, and she said this is still being investigated. Chandler is speaking out in hopes of this not happening to future riders.
“I think the bus drivers need to practice a little more responsibility,” said Chandler. “These are our kids, and we’re entrusting them with their safety.”