Driver apologises after boy forced to walk home in snow
INSIDER NEWSDESK
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8 February 2026
CORTINA D'AMPEZZO - A bus driver who forced an 11-year-old boy to walk six kilometres through snow after rejecting his ticket has met with the child’s family and apologised, according to Italian broadcaster RAI 1.
Salvatore Russotto, who remains suspended without pay from Dolomiti Bus, said the face-to-face meeting brought relief after weeks of controversy following the incident on the route between Vodo and San Vito di Cadore in the Belluno area in late January.
“I met with the family and we shook hands,” Russotto told Uno Mattina on Monday. “I apologised. A weight has been lifted.”
The parents from San Vito di Cadore have decided not to pursue legal action against Russotto, who now awaits a company decision on his future. “I have to go to the company with the union and explain what happened, and then they will decide whether to fire me or not,” he said.
The case attracted national attention after Riccardo Pradel was ordered off the bus on 27 January for holding a standard 2.50 euros ticket rather than the new 10 euros Olympic fare introduced for the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Games period. The special ticket can only be purchased via app or debit card.
The child walked approximately six kilometres along a snow-covered cycle path in sub-zero temperatures, taking over two hours to reach home. His family reported he returned struggling to speak and walk, with wet clothes and signs of hypothermia.
His grandmother, Chiara Balbinot, a Padua-based lawyer, filed a complaint for child abandonment. The Belluno prosecutor’s office opened an investigation to determine criminal responsibility.
Dolomiti Bus suspended Russotto and launched an internal inquiry. The company said the service had been subcontracted to La Linea Spa, which employed the driver. Video surveillance footage from the bus may be used in the investigation.
Riccardo has since returned to school and has been offered a symbolic role in the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics.
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