State records show a Minnesota school bus contractor repeatedly operated vehicles that state inspectors had placed out of service for safety violations, but prosecutors rarely filed charges, reported ABC 5.
The investigation reportedly followed a high-profile crash involving a Pride Transportation school bus last spring. The bus carrying students reportedly lost control and struck a building on the Hamline University campus, injuring three children and an adult.
According to the news report, records indicate the Minnesota State Patrol caught Pride Transportation operating school buses marked out of service at least 16 times since 2020. State inspection rules prohibit those buses from returning to service until identified defects are repaired, and the vehicles pass reinspection.
In one instance, a trooper reportedly found five out-of-service Pride buses transporting students in St. Paul. The citation referenced the company’s history of operating buses after failed annual inspections. About 85 percent of the company’s buses failed their latest inspections this year, according to state records cited in the report.
A former participant in the inspection process, who requested anonymity to protect his employment, alleged that some buses returned to service without repairs after receiving out-of-service decals. “We’d apply the out-of-service decal, and they say they’d get it fixed and then it would be en route that evening with nothing fixed,” he said.
An attorney representing Pride Transportation declined an interview and offered no comment. However, a company driver previously told local news reporters that buses sometimes failed for minor issues that were repaired, and that failed buses were not driven.
Troopers reportedly requested criminal charges in nearly every cited instance involving an out-of-service bus, the investigation found. Minnesota lawmakers increased the offense from a misdemeanor to a gross misdemeanor in 2023, but court records reportedly show prosecutors have filed the charge only once since the change.
St. Paul City Attorney Irene Kao reportedly said there was insufficient evidence to pursue criminal charges in the cases reviewed by her office. Kao did not respond to any additional questions.
The investigation also identified a previously unreported crash last May in Edina. A Pride bus without students reportedly crossed a parking lot and struck a house. Investigators could not determine the exact cause but cited possible driver error. Inspectors also concluded the bus should not have left the garage because of critical safety problems, including a severely worn tire.
Written with the assistance of AI.
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