No charges over 'nightmare' school bus ride

Ritchies Transport has defended its driver.

Police have decided against laying charges over an incident in which terrified West Auckland school children jumped from a moving bus whose driver allegedly refused to let them off.

One teenage boy who jumped, after the double-decker bus travelled ten kilometres from Laingholm in the Waitakere Ranges to the far side of Huia on Monday last month, suffered a foot injury and spent one or two nights in Auckland's Starship Childrens Hospital.

Furious parents called for action again the Ritchies Transport relief driver, who is understood to have become angry when some of the 50 or so children from Green Bay High School and Glen Eden Intermediate in his charge kept their fingers on buzzers after he missed their stop at Parau.

But Ritchies backed him up and the police have tonight announced that after investigating the incident, they have concluded "there is no evidence of any criminal offending or other offending under the Land Transport Act."

Sergeant Brett Campbell-Howard of the Waitemata road policing division said in a statement that the case had been reviewed by the police legal section.

"Police now consider that the matter has been dealt with and that the incident was the result of a combination of factors," he said.

"Police have provided feedback to all involved parties to ensure a similar event is prevented from happening again."

A police spokeswoman would not elaborate on the combination of factors referred to, saying she did not want to "relitigate" the matter.

Ritchies director Andrew Ritchie could not be reached last night but Green Bay High principal Morag Hutchinson said the two schools involved and the Ministry of Education were due to meet the bus company tomorrow to discuss issues arising from the incident.

She said she was unable to comment in the meantime.