CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Last week NBC Charlotte reported some parents who feel their kids aren’t safe at their bus stop. They've caught several drivers breaking the law, blowing right past their kids' stopped bus on Ardrey Kell Road.
Since then, CMPD has stationed officers in the area around pick up and drop off. Parents say drivers have slowed down a bit, but they filed an unsafe bus stop request with the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools transportation department and it was denied, twice.
NBC Charlotte has learned this isn't an isolated issue, hundreds of those reports have been filed already this school year.
CMS officials say they've gone through more than 300 unsafe bus stop reports since early September, and there are still more to go.
There are several videos of drivers completely disregarding a school bus stop sign and flashing lights captured by Leigh Ann Ordan and her neighbor.
“My goal in life is to protect my child and right now it’s not a safe environment,” Ordan said.
They filed an unsafe bus stop request and asked for the bus stop to be moved a few feet away to the entrance of their neighborhood. They were denied, the reason being the area doesn't provide a safe turning radius for the bus.
Ordan said buses have done it before, and she doesn't think this should be the end of the conversation.
“I know CMS can't control the cars," Ordan said. "I'm not asking them to control the cars. I'm just asking them to look at how can we get this bus to not be around vehicles that are going to fly past it. Just give a better option."
They're not the only parents dealing with this.
There are more than 31,000 bus stops in the district. By September 10, CMS had 415 of these requests. They say as of Tuesday, there are 124 of those left to go through.
CMS officials say safety is always a top priority, but at the start of the school year, the superintendent said they need help at the bus stop.
"We're asking parents to be vigilant to ensure children are safe while they're waiting on the school bus and going home from the school bus stop,” Earnest Winston said back in August.
A CMS official says right-hand stops are preferred and used in as many cases as possible.