NJ school bus driver caught texting, no hands on the wheel

VERNON — A school bus driver is the latest caught on video texting while behind the wheel

In two brief videos posted by parent Aimee Sisco, the driver of a Vernon public school bus is seen using a flip phone to text last Friday. At one point, the driver puts on her glasses and appears to be using both hands to text before using her right hand to straighten the wheel.

She continues to text as the bus stops to let children off before folding up her phone and taking off her glasses as they exited.

"Excuse me, but this is f’n obscene. I have nothing but nasty to say about this driver, and whatever bus company hired her. Shame. Shame," Sisco wrote with the video in her post. She did not say who took the video.

In a message on the district website, the district wrote it is aware of the video and the incident is under investigation.

"The driver will not be on the route until such time that the investigation is completed," The district wrote.

Vernon superintendent Arthur DiBenedetto told New Jersey 101.5 that decisions about driver employment are made by the company contracted by the district to handle regular bus routes, Baldwin, Decker and First Student. He said the company will be notified that the driver cannot be used in Vernon.

He said that Vernon's police chief and traffic officer will meet with all drivers and district school transportation officials Tuesday morning to review rules and regulationss when children are on-board their vehicles.

In another Facebook post early Sunday, Sisco wrote that she was pleased with township's response.

"More than thankful that our Board of Education has handled the situation at hand, not only quickly, but classy," she wrote.

The make and model of the phone is not clear in the video, but it appears to be a flip phone. Messages for Sisco and have not yet been returned.

Bus drivers are prohibited by state law from all cell phone use while driving except in emergencies.

In January, rider Sean Michael took video of the driver of a NJ Transit bus headed from Atlantic City to Cumberland County College in Upper Deerfield texting while driving.

An NJ Transit spokeswoman said the agency took the driver off the road would investigate the matter.

In July, police in Lakewood and Howell investigated a video that appeared to show a school bus speeding and not stopping for train tracks:

In October, the driver of an Old Bridge school bus has been suspended after she was caught on video texting while driving.

In November, a school bus with five children on board was caught on video speeding along Route 18 at upward of 80 mph. The driver was terminated:

A day after New Jersey 101.5 reported on that incident, another video of the same bus surfaced:

In December, the driver of a school van that was caught on video going 90 mph on the Garden State Parkway was reprimanded and suspended for a week: