Parent Primer School Transportation

Transcription

1 Parent Primer School Transportation TEAMWORK: We need your help BUS ROUTING/SAFETY INFORMATION PLEASE NOTE DISTRICT POLICY # 8412: Walking Distance to A Bus Stop. The Board of Education has established Walking Distance to A Bus Stop Policy # This policy establishes the following walking distance from home to a bus stop: K-5 up to 1/10 th of a mile 6-8 up to 0.5 of a mile 9-12 up to 1.0 mile. Parents/guardians are responsible for the safety of their children to/from the bus stop. ASPEN are approximate and changes are made as needed until the start of school. Check closer to the start of school for latest updates. Please remember the pickup and drop-off times are APPROXIMATE. We don t guarantee an exact pickup and drop-off time! For the first couple of weeks, have your child at the stop at least 10 minutes early. Times of pickup will vary until the kinks are worked out. We then ask that your child be at the bus stop at least FIVE minutes prior to the bus arrival time. Sometime the bus may be running a couple of minutes early or late with respect to the advertised time. Please call the bus garage if the bus is running late more than 10 minutes. Above all else, tell your children not to run after a missed school bus doing so can be dangerous! Children should not wait inside the home or the garage, it is very hard for the driver to see them and the bus may not stop. We are not obligated to stop if we don t see a student at the stop. Please disregard the letter designation after the route number. The designated stops are SUBJECT TO CHANGE. If stop changes, we will notify the student and the parent either verbally, telephonically, in writing or a combination of. State Education Department mandates that we run an efficient routing system, therefore changes are inevitable. For parents who drop off children at the Middle School going to Out-of-District Schools, dropping off behind buses and walking in between buses is not allowed and is not safe. Your cooperation in this matter is greatly appreciated. Door to door pickup and drop off is for students who live on specially designated roads and children with special needs (IEP) only. Please make sure your house number is visible from the road. By law, we cannot allow any object (including any athletic equipment or musical instruments) that cannot fit on the lap of a child, to be brought on the bus. Equipment or instruments that do fit on the lap may not be higher than the seat in front of your child. Bus drivers, by law and regulation, are not allowed to wait or beep their horn at your stop. Objects with sharp points, such as an umbrella, are not allowed on the buses due to safety concerns. Please re-enforce the use of seat belts on school buses. Eating, and drinking on the bus is not allowed. Please make sure your child(ren) never chase after a bus for any reason. Call the department if the bus is running late more than 10 minutes. Last but not least, the parent(s) is/are responsible for their child to and from the bus stop. Students whose parent(s) are not home will be returned to their school of origin, we will no longer hold the student on the bus until someone show up at the stop. Bus drivers have the final say so on seating arrangements for students. Buses will not be allowed to go back for children who are not out at the stop prior to the arrival of the bus and who miss being picked up. 1

2 A Note from the Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Thomas Douglas Planning for the transportation of our students is key to having the school year get underway smoothly. You are an important partner in making this happen! Transportation routes, bus stops, and scheduled pick-up and drop-off times are usually posted to ASPEN approximately the first week in August. We ask that you review your child's assigned stops and you note the following important reminders about BC bus transportation: The district provides bus transportation for all elementary students; students in grades 6-8 who live more than a half mile from school; students in grades 9-12 who live more than a mile from school; and resident students who attend private and parochial schools within 15 miles of their homes. There is no door-to-door service for elementary students. Changes were made to transportation in whereby students in grades K-5 may walk up to one-tenth of a mile to their assigned bus stop; middle school students up to 1/2 mile; and high school students up to a mile to reach their stop. The district is responsible for creating stops that are appropriate and consistent with our guidelines, and we strive to provide a safe ride to and from school. Parents are responsible for the safety of their children to and from their assigned stop and while waiting for the bus to arrive. Bus stops are primarily located on the main thoroughfares within a development, avoiding side streets and cul de sacs. A student must be at a bus stop in order for the bus to pick them up. Buses will not double back to stops. During drop-off, all kindergarten students must identify an adult at the stop in order to exit the bus. If not, the student will be returned to his or her school of origin and parents or guardians will be contacted. When bus stops and pick-up/drop-off times are assigned, please be advised that these are generated by computer using the enrollment and transportation data available at the time. These times are subject to change as the year progresses, as drivers, parents, and students become accustomed to the schedule. We ask that you exercise patience during this initial period (usually around the first six weeks of school). The routes and schedules that are in ASPEN are tentative and changes may be made, if needed by the transportation department, up to the first day of school. Parents are encouraged to check back often to see if a change has been made to their child's assigned bus stop/route. If you have any questions or concerns regarding these procedures, or with the specific bus stop to which your child was assigned, please feel free to contact our Transportation Department by phone at or by at [email protected]. I would also like to encourage you to update your School News Notifier (SNN) options, if you haven t already, to keep up with school news that is most pertinent to you and your family. SNN is an opt-in ing system and is our primary means of conveying information to parents. You can link to the SNN registration page here. While you re there, you may want to sign up for school closings and district information. It only takes a couple of minutes and you ll be up to date on all of the news that affects your child! I would like to thank you for assisting us and helping us ensure the safety of your children as they make their way to and from school. We look forward to another exciting year enjoy the remaining weeks of summer! Sincerely, Dr. Thomas J. Douglas, Superintendent of Schools Bethlehem Central School District 2

3 The New York State Education Department requires these rules be posted, taught and enforced on every school bus in the state. Kids may ask Why do we have all these rules? Our answer to them: At one time something really bad happened and kids got hurt or killed. So caring people studied what happened and made a RULE for other kids to follow so that bad thing won t happen again. Following the rules on the bus helps the driver make a safe ride for everyone! Just like a sports team plays by the rules, bus riders are a team too. REASONS FOR SCHOOL BUS RULES: RULE #1 Stay in your seat, keep aisle clear: 1 So you won t bump heads in the aisle 2 Block driver s view out back bottom window for tailgaters (blind spot) 3 Won t fall if bus bumps or swerves (hurt self or someone else) 4 Set a good safety example for kids watching what you do 5 Don t distract driver 6 Wearing your seatbelt leaves more room for you and your seatmates and everyone is safer. Wearing a seatbelt makes rule # 1 easy to follow! RULE #2 Do not eat or drink or smoke on bus: (driver follows rules too!) 1 Choking hazard 2 Food allergies 3 SPILLS smelly and sticky and wet foot can slip 4 Attract RODENTS who chew wiring ($$!) ants, bees and other insects RULE #3 Cooperate with driver and attendants 1 They are trained to know what s best for your safety 2 Listening and following instructions will help you learn 3 It is right to show respect for the adults who care for you 4 Gives you time to think first before you disagree. Practicing this makes you smarter with people. 3

4 RULE #4 The Driver is authorized to assign seats 1 So driver can separate kids making too much noise together 2 So driver can protect a student from a bully 3 Isolate a student who needs a space by themselves 4 To organize the bus so everyone knows where to sit every day and not waste time looking for a seat RULE #5 Be courteous, use no profane language (potty talk) 1 Bad language and swear words are disrespectful to everyone and make others uncomfortable 2 Swearing is rude and inconsiderate and will hurt feelings 3 Bad language sets a poor example for younger students who can hear it 4 Swearing can scare younger students RULE #6 Do not fight, push, or shove 1 Someone can get hurt! 2 You can get hurt of someone retaliates (does it back to you) 3 Sets a poor example (stooping to that level) and scares others around you 4 Is very disrespectful and distracting can ruin your whole day! 5 Following this rule can teach you self-control, good thinking, and when to ask for help RULE #7 Keep head, hands and feet inside the bus at all times 1 You could get severely injured / stung 2 Sets a bad example for younger students 3 Avoid temptation to throw things out the window (littering) (hurt pedestrian) (give your school a BAD NAME) RULE #8 No animals, insects, reptiles or pets on the bus 1 Pet can get frightened, loose on the bus, or hurt 2 Students can get scared, out of their seats, bitten 3 Others may be allergic 4 Animal can make a mess not fun for anyone! 5 Serious distraction DANGEROUS! RULE #9 No hazardous materials on the bus 1 Might make you feel sick (strong smell) 2 Could catch on fire easily (lighter fluid, hair spray) 3 If lost or misplaced, can get into the wrong hands 4 Puts the whole bus in danger RULE #10 Do not damage the bus and keep it clean 1 Respect a public place that everyone depends on and uses every day 2 You learn to look after your seat and report anything not right to the driver who can get it fixed 3 Set a great example when you throw away trash younger students see what you do! 4 Makes the driver feel proud of everyone on the bus! 4

5 The golden rule: Use INSIDE voices on the bus so the driver can hear the radio, a student in need, emergency vehicles approaching SCHOOL BUS = Safest mode of transportation to and from school Guidelines for bringing items on the bus: Everything in backpack, worn on both shoulders, zipped up! They need Hands free for handrail in case of slip or fall on the steps. Sharp/pointy objects = NO! (kids and eyes) Exp: umbrellas with blunt, rounded end are fine, but if pointy please leave them at the stop. (Collapsible type fits in backpack, okay.) Large items must fit on lap (remember backpack is already there) Cannot protrude above level of seat back. A few examples: (A longer list is available on the Transportation webpage Cellos, Lacrosse sticks, broom-handle sculpture, large cardboard-box-project Proven fate of items NOT in the backpack on the bus: Projects get broken/never make it to school Pose a safety hazard (ball rolls under brake pedal) 5

6 End up in Lost & Found. You don t want to go there Label EVERYTHING Name/Address Tags on backpack Name on everything else AT THE STOP Be there 5 minutes early: everyone dressed appropriately for the weather. After 1st couple of weeks the bus schedule gets consistent Sub Drivers don t know who to look for - they need to see kids out If bus pulls away from stop before kid arrives, Instruct kids to return home. Call garage. DO NOT chase bus Bus is more than 10 minutes late? Call garage Wait 15 back from roadside (1/2 way back in driveway) Stand where visible to approaching bus Line up single file/wait for reds (door open) If crossers and non-crossers at the intersection crossers always go first WALK, don t run Bus Horn! Parents must reinforce that the horn means only one thing DANGER-GO BACK Drivers make split second decision based on child returning in the right direction! On the Bus BUCKLE YOUR SEATBELT: Parents must reinforce this practice Just 1 year to impress the habit/awareness Peer Pressure can work either way Drivers will not be able to see every problem that occurs on the bus, they are concentrating on driving the bus and due to the high seat backs, are prevented from seeing what goes on behind the seats Buses tend to be noisy, engine noise, body flexing noise, and the excitement of children because it s time for them to unwind from school If your child is being picked on or bullied, encourage him/her to tell the driver at the first opportunity when the bus has stopped. Most of the buses are equipped with a camera system, however, these systems are not full-proof in picking out all that occurs on the bus GOING HOME: Drop-offs K s - DRIVER MUST SEE Parent/designated adult ONLY at official stop location designated on route sheets Permission for an alternate designated adult must be named in writing to Transportation office ANY/ALL last minute deviations must be CALLED in to Transportation office. 6

7 Children under 12 are not allowed to receive a Kindergarten student! SCENARIO: Unknown Adult/Wrong Stop Positive ID will be requested. Your approval must be verified. Estranged parent meeting the bus: Please DON T. Delays route..puts Driver in difficult situation..endangers welfare of all riders Problems may pop up First Week inconsistencies : patience, please. Seating issues: All elementary bus riders have ASSIGNED SEATS determined by the Principal and driver. This is the key to a peaceful bus! Need to make stop changes? call Transportation Office Complaint about driver? hand a note to driver first, give them a chance. But call the Transportation Office if not resolved. (Like plumbers/lawyers/or doctors.drivers are not ALL perfect)(most of us try.) In conclusion, please understand that the school bus is the safest existing mode of transporting students, bar none. We ask that you support them and us throughout the school year. Thank you! BCSD Transportation Dept fax 7