OT- school bus regulations

[Benducci]

Anyone familiar with school bus regulations? We are eligible (our last year of eligibility)for busing for my girls because they are in kindergarten. They get driven home each day by one of those big buses. We live on a dead-end street - the end of the street is town property. The bus driver this year is having difficulty turning the bus around at the end of the street. In years past the drivers have not had this difficulty. The bus company is saying the prior buses were not as large but I think it is the driver, not the bus. Now with winter coming, they don't want to drop the girls off in front of the house. They said with the winter conditions, the bus won't be able to turn around at all because it won't be plowed properly (which I pointed out is town property & the snowblowers are stored & the gravel is there there so it is safe to say it will be plowed) they want me to walk down (with my youngest) to the end of the street and pick them up. I said no - figure something out - the street is a main road, very busy with no sidewalks. There is no place for me (with my youngest who is 3) to stand and when the kids got off the bus, they would be getting off on the opposite side & crossing the road. I would also have to stand around for about 1/2 hour waiting because the bus is not consistent with when he comes. Somewhere I had heard that kindergarten students had to be dropped off in front of their homes - does anyone know anything about this? The woman at the board of ed said she was going to refer this to her supervisor to see what they could do but I want to have some info to back me up. I don't understand how other buses have had no problem but this one does.

Thanks for listening so far - any insight would be greatly appreciated!

 

[NotUrsula]

So far as I know, there are no national standards for that kind of thing. Policy on who gets service and what the safety rules will be is made at the local level (by the school board) and put into the contract with the bus operator, if it is a contracted service. Whatever your local school board's transportation office decides is what will happen. Sometimes state Education Depts. will weigh in on equipment standards, such as mandating swing-arms on the front of the bus so that children cannot cross where the driver cannot see them, but generally they limit themselves to things that are easily-understood universal standards.

The rule in my district was recently changed to say that the only requirement for service was to have 1 stop a minimum of 1.5 miles from each student's place of residence. The child's age makes no difference; if they wish to ride, they have to go to the nearest designated stop, wherever that happens to be. There was a lot of outcry about it, as a lot of the students are picked up before dawn in the wintertime, but that is the best that the district can do with the money they have.

 

[dementia412]

My KG and special ed second grader don't get the bus at all. They walk almost a mile. Because it's only .8 miles they can't bus them, but the kids have to cross two busy streets without a crosswalk guard! I was pissed, but got nowhere about this... they told me I might get one for the seven year old because she's in special education, but they wouldn't transport my five year old from the same house to the same school. He would be walking alone! We lucked out halfway through the year and got someone who drives them, but for a few monthes my 5 and 7 year old were walking all that way every day.
When they did bus we had just as many problems, maybe more. My daughter missed tons of school because it was too far to walk, and we didn't have a car... so everytime the bus driver messed up, she missed. We complained, and nothing was ever done... they changed the pickup and drop off times every other week, showed up early and didn't wait, showed up late... didn't matter because the school system didn't care.... honestly I don't want them riding those death traps anyway. They are supposedly planning a trip to Detroit at the end of the year, and no way are my kids going!

Man, I can type when it's not my homework!

 

[Erie Islands]

We go through this in my town all the time! Remind them that the turn-around has to be large enough for a fire truck, so that's makes it large enough for a school bus. Some of our drivers are so lazy...every year we have a kid left behind on the bus because he/she has fallen asleep and the drivers don't take the time to check (which they are supposed to do). Good luck-I'm afraid you're going to have an uphill battle.

 

[stacy6552]

School busses do not go down dead end streets in our county.

 

[Hannathy]

Our Kinder. Kids who get the bus just get dropped of at whatever the normal stop is. My son's friend walks about a block or so that I know for sure. Mine walked to school which was about 1/3 of a mile with no sidewalks so I think yours could walk down 1 street. How busy could it be if it is a dead end?

 

[clori]

where I live you have to live over 1 mile from the school to get on a school bus at a designated stop and there is no door to door transportation unless special ed. At some point it switches to 2 miles maybe in high school. We live half mile from the school and I have no car so dd6, dd2 and I walk back/forth from school daily. We do have one major street to cross but it has a crossing guard. What I don't like is in the winter the sidewalks aren't always passable even though the law is sidewalks have to be shoveled by homeowners.

 

[Becky2005]

School busses do not go down dead end streets in our county.

I'm pretty sure that is how it is here too. I'm not 100% sure but I know morning Kindergarteners are dropped off at their house BUT I saw last year some kids who live in the townhouses across the street from us, were dropped off on our street (all the townhouses are in little cul-de-sacs off of a U road, I'm on the main road...so my guess, is that is what worked out the easiest with where they lived.

HOWEVER, for afternoon Kindergarteners they DON'T drop off in front of the houses, they are dropped off at the bus stop just like all the other kids.

 

[NotUrsula]

Remind them that the turn-around has to be large enough for a fire truck, so that's makes it large enough for a school bus.

Turnarounds don't always have to be large enough for a fire truck. I've never lived anywhere where local code required a turn space large enough for a fire truck at the end of a dead-end street. I've seen PLENTY of fire trucks backing down the street in my day. They drive straight on the way in when it counts, and they back out when the emergency is over. If they can back the thing into the garage of an early 19th century firehouse, a regular street is a piece of cake.

 

[pezpam]

Waiting at the end of a dead-end road is standard here and we do it every morning. Nobody gets door-to-door transportation unless they do live right on the main roads and their door happens to be the stop. I can't imagine a bus would be able to turn around at the end of my road.

You shouldn't need to stand in the main road, but wait on the part of the corner that's bordering the dead-end road. If it's a yard, you just wait on the corner of the yard. My DD gets on and off the bus on the same side of the street - they don't run the route backwards in the afternoon - but if yours doesn't, then you should walk over and get them. Traffic should stop and the bus driver will wait and watch your child cross, but I'd be more comfortable walking a young child across the road just in case some idiot didn't stop.

It's really not the end of the world not to have door to door service - I remember we had to walk across the street and down a block to get to my kindergarten bus stop.

 

[daisyduck123]

In my county, buses do not go into any courts (cul-de-sacs) or any dead end street...nothing that causes them to turn around. It does not matter how old the students are.

 

[Benducci]

It just is agravating that the stop was set up before the school year. They have been taking the bus for 2 years with no problems. Because of the bus regulations, there are no bus stops in our area - no one qualifies for busing. My street is a dead end but they want to drop the kids off at the beginning which is a major road. There is no place to stand other than the road- there are no sidewalks & there is a conrete wall on one side entering into the street and a railroad tie wall on the other side. The other side of the road is a ravine. So there literally is no place to stand. There are other kids on our street - when they were in kindergarten the bus drivers had no problems turning around. Last year's bus driver had no problems. It is just this driver. He is not a good driver. We have had fire engines down that end of the street & we regularly get town trucks with trailers. We have never had anyone get stuck. I just want to know what my rights are so I can argue that they have to find a solution other than making my kids get off on a busy street & me standing there in the road waiting.
And I have no faith in cars stopping for buses. I see them passing school buses all the time around here. It is somewhat of a problem.

 

[agnes!]

You need to contact your local school board/board of ed & find out what the rules/laws are within your local school system. Maybe call up the bus co & ask what the rules are (being careful not to mention you specific situation).

Also activate what I like to call the "Moms' Network", meaning get in touch with friends 1)whose kids attend the same school yours do or 2)who have older kids & have dealt with the school system before. An experienced mom or dad can probably give you all the pertinent contact info.

Good luck,
agnes!

 

[tjmw2727]

We just moved from MA and no they would not pick up or drop off on a dead end or even a cul-de-sack and its the same here where we are now in DE. I would check your local school district for the specifics. All our students have the same bus stops - High, Middle and Elementary even for Kindergarten. You may just have to walk them to and from the bus stop.

TJ

 

[ckoncurat]

I walk to the end of my culdesac twice every day. I don't consider it a big deal. In bad weather we all sit in the car until the bus comes. My kids are in 4th, 2nd and K. I honestly feel lucky to only have to walk a block.

 

[pooh4evr]

DD is in K and is the only one at her bus stop which is not at the end of our court either but abiut a block and a half away across the street and around the corner- her driver is great though- K s are supposed to be met by a parent/guardian at the stop (unless there is an older sibling) in our district- the rare occasions I miss the time (or being 9 mos preg, can;t get my behind up there fast enough) he drops her off where I am or at the end of the street- anymore since it is winter I drive to the stop and we wait in the car until the bus gets to the stop before hers. If it is that much of a problem then call the bus garage and see if you can get the stop changed But as other posters have said busses here won't go down dead end streets or into courts either.

 

[allison443]

As others have stated, bus policies are local. Your town's rules may not be similar to other people's town. My town in NJ uses school buses, there are towns near me that don't provide any busing. Your town/board of education should have a person who is called the transportation coordinator, or director of transportation, something like that. Your best option is to contact that person with your problem.

Also, did I read your post correctly that this is your children's last year of eligibility for busing? How will they be getting to school next year?

 

[monorailsilver]

I am sure it is up to the district/bus company.

In my town, it is the dead end has to be longer then a half mile for the bus to come down.

My dead end is shorter then a 1/2 mile so I have to take my dd5, ds3 & dd9mo to the bus stop every am. I drive there since it colder right now. My dh usually takes her but he has to be in earlier for work for the month of December but he will resume in Jan.

Then at 11:20, I have to go & get her from the bus stop. When it is warmer I do walk up there but the weather has been ify & I have been shopping while I have one less child to deal with.

 

[momto2girls]

That must be so annoying! I would be upset too. Of course, I abhor school buses and would just opt to drive my kids to school instead. I think it is unfortunate that you are dealing with this though.