TRANSPORTATION POLICY
It is the policy of the Board of Education to provide transportation for those students, of any age, whose
distance from their school makes this service necessary within the limitations established by State law,
regulations of the State Board of Education, and guidelines established by the (School District) Board of
Education.
School buses and student-transportation vehicles shall be purchased, housed, and maintained by the
District for the transportation of resident students between their home areas and the schools of the
District to which they are assigned.
All school buses and student-transportation vehicles, whether purchased, leased, or contracted for shall
comply with specifications defined in State law. Each operator of a school vehicle used by the District
shall be licensed for the purpose for which the vehicle is being used and shall operate the vehicles in
accordance with Federal and State laws. The license, a medical health certificate, and record of
continuing education must be in the driver’s possession when driving as it may be required by law.
Transportation of eligible vocational or special education children between their home areas and
schools outside the District shall be arranged through the use of District-owned vehicles, through
cooperation with other districts, through commercial carriers, and/or by other means in the most
efficient and economical manner.
Special education students will be transported in accordance to State regulations and the student’s
determined I.E.P. (Individual Educational Plan).
The Board reserves the right to terminate transportation or portion thereof, based on financial, legal, or
other considerations, or except as mandated by law. It is a privilege for students to ride a District vehicle
and this privilege may be revoked if the student’s conduct is in violation of the Superintendent’s
administrative guidelines or the Code of Conduct pertaining to student transportation.
Transportation between home and school will be provided for each resident child attending a Stateapproved, non-public school within the District. Transportation shall also be provided to a Stateapproved, non-public school outside the District on the same basis that the District transports any
District students who attend a public school outside the District.
The Board authorizes the Superintendent to install and operate video cameras on District buses to
enhance student safety and well-being. She/He shall establish appropriate administrative guidelines for
the proper use of the cameras.
The Board of Education will annually designate a committee of the Board to hear all transportation
appeals and rule upon the Board’s behalf. The decision of the committee is final.
The Board reserves the right to charge parents of non-resident students for transportation services.
In circumstances where the (School District) boundaries and the boundaries of an adjacent school
district and its transportation system create a situation in which (School District) resident students
would receive substantially better transportation services from the adjacent district, the Director of
Transportation is authorized to deviate from basic policy to the extent that the quality of transportation
services does not arise as a basis for a property transfer petition.
Transportation will be provided for students in the (School District) living over one and one-half (1 ½)
miles from the school they attend.
Elementary students may be required to meet a bus, up to one-half (1/2) miles and secondary students
up to one (1) mile. These distances shall be determined to the closest legal stop on the established
route at which the student may board the bus. Busses will not make turnarounds unless a student lives
over the one-half (1/2) mile or the mile walking requirement from the closest stop on the established
route. Private drives and roads cannot be used to determine mileage eligibility for students to ride a bus.
The transportation policy is interpreted so that any student riding a (Designated Middle School) bus
route be required to walk no more than one-half (1/2) mile to a bus stop. Any student riding a high
school bus route (8th through 12th grades) can be required to walk up to a mile to a bus stop.
Routes will be designed annually to travel the shortest distance to pick up students within the
limitations above. The established routes may change annually or as necessary to fulfill these policies
and to accommodate changes in student population.
When a student(s) lives a distance from school where they are otherwise ineligible for transportation,
the student may ride a bus to school under the following conditions:
 The student meets the bus at an existing stop.
 The bus has room to accommodate the student riding.
A bus stop will not be assigned closer to an existing stop than a distance of 500 feet except where
appropriate to accommodate kindergarten students, if necessary.
Buses are routed so they do not make more than four (4) stops within a distance of one (1) mile.
Permanent bus stops are provided within the city for students that live over one and one-half (1 ½) miles
from the school they attend.
Each fall after bus routes are established, busses will not be re-routed to accommodate baby sitter
locations, except for kindergarten students.
Elementary students must be picked up or dropped off at the same bus stop residency location each day
of the week although the pick-up bus stop can be different from the drop-off bus stop.
Transportation will be provided for students when a student who lives less than one and one-half (1 ½)
miles from the school is in grades K-6 and meets the following criteria:
 All adult members of the household are employed at such time that the child is left unattended
for a substantial period of time prior to leaving for school or upon arrival home.
 Provisions have been made to have the child taken to a sitter’s home during these periods.
 The sitter’s home is located more than one and one-half (1 ½) mile from the child’s school.
 Sitter’s home is in the transportation area of the student’s building.
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Transportation shall also be available at specially determined bus stops for students in grades K-6 who
live one-half (1/2) mile or more, but less than one and one-half (1 ½) mile from the school they attend
and must walk to the school on roadways, shoulders, or roads that have posted speed limits exceeding
twenty-five (25) miles per hour. This provision does not include students who must cross, but not walk
on a road or the shoulder of a road with a posted speed exceeding twenty-five (25).
Transportation will be provided for students on kindergarten a.m. take-home and p.m. pick-up routes,
busses will be routed to stops which eliminate all reasonable hazards and are located as close to
student’s residence as possible.
When kindergarten students are being delivered to their stop, a parent or responsible person shall be
present to take charge of the student.
If needed, the Superintendent has the authority to establish administrative guidelines to ensure proper
implementation of this policy.
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