Bus Information

Waiting to Board a Bus | Riding the Bus | On the Trip Home | Responsibilities of Parents/Guardians | General Information
Special Information | CEP and Daycare Stops | Depot Information | Second Run Information | Delayed Schedule

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School Hours

Middle/High School:
7:40 a.m. to 2:20 p.m.

Elementary School: 
9:05 a.m. to 3:45 p.m.

Bus Regulations for Students

It is important for all involved district administrators, school bus drivers, parents, and students to understand the rules that students are expected to follow. School bus transportation is authorized only for students who are regularly enrolled in public school.

The JCPS Transportation Services Department provides district students with the best and safest vehicles and drivers. We ask for your cooperation in helping to ensure that your child complies with the following regulations.

Waiting to Board a Bus

• Arrive at your bus stop five minutes ahead of the bus. The driver will not wait for you.
• Keep the roadway clear of books, clothing, and other articles. Never play in the path of traffic, and stand well away from the road when the bus approaches.
• Do not damage property, such as flowers, shrubbery, windows, fences, and other items while waiting for the bus.
• Avoid making excessive noise.
• Remember that fighting at bus stops, and/or on the way to and from a bus stop, subjects the student to disciplinary action (to be reported to the school principal).
• Do not run alongside the bus when the bus is moving. Wait until the bus stops; then walk to the door and board the bus in an orderly manner. Do not push or shove.
• If you live on the opposite side of the road from a bus stop, wait on your side of the road until the bus arrives and the driver gives the signal to cross the road.
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Riding the Bus

• Obey the driver’s instructions. The driver of a school bus is in complete charge of the passengers while they are aboard. If you have a complaint, take it to your principal.
• Remember that the driver has the authority to assign seats.
• Do not sit on books. Instead, hold them in your lap. Books and other objects are not to be piled in the aisle. Band instruments or other large objects will be allowed on the bus only if the items can be held in the student’s lap.
• Be seated immediately, and remain seated while the bus is in motion. If a seat is not available, passengers should hold onto the back of a seat.
• Do not extend arms, legs, or head out of the bus.
• Refrain from talking to the driver except in an emergency.
• Remember that pets and animals are not permitted on the bus at any time.
• Do not tamper with the emergency door, fire extinguisher, or other equipment on the bus.
• Do not mar or deface the bus. Seat coverings must not be damaged in any manner. Anyone caught damaging the equipment will be subject to disciplinary action and/or restitution.
• Do not fight or scuffle on the bus or create any loud disturbances.
• Do not wave or shout to pedestrians or occupants of other vehicles, and do not throw objects from the bus window.
• Keep the bus clean. Do not throw wastepaper on the floor.
• Remember that smoking, eating, and drinking are not permitted on the school bus.
• Know that the use of profanity and obscene signs on the school bus is prohibited.
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On the Trip Home

• You are permitted to leave the bus only at the regular, designated stop. Any change must be made with the parent's/guardian's request in writing, and changes must be approved by the signature of the school principal.
• If a student lives on the opposite side of a road from the bus stop, the student should go to the front of the bus and wait until the bus driver gives the signal to cross the road. Never cross the road in the rear of a stopped school bus.
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Responsibilities of Parents/Guardians

• Report any alleged misconduct on the school bus to the principal.
• Report all traffic hazards and the bus numbers of all buses observed being operated carelessly; call the Transportation Services Department at (502) 485-3470.
• Encourage students to observe all safety and conduct regulations established for the safe and efficient operation of the school bus.
• Observe extreme caution when approaching a bus stop, a moving bus, or a stopped bus.
• Help supervise large numbers of children at the bus stop.
• See that your child is at the stop five minutes before the bus is scheduled to arrive.
• After the start of the school year, all requests for a transportation change must be approved by the coordinator and principal.
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General Information

• Students are expected to ride their assigned buses.
• Students are not permitted to switch buses without authorization from a principal or the Transportation Services Department.
• Any student in violation of these regulations will be subject to disciplinary action in accordance with the Student Support and Behavior Intervention Handbook and the Student Bill of Rights.
• Youth Gangs—The displaying of colors, hand signs, graffiti, wearing of apparel, or other representation of gang affiliation/membership will be considered intimidation/harassment and is expressly prohibited on school grounds or during any school activity. Violation may result in suspension or other appropriate action.
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Special Information

• All students in special needs programs who are scheduled to ride special buses will be contacted by their drivers prior to the opening of the school regarding pick-up time.
• Kindergarten students will use the regular bus service at the beginning and end of the normal school day. Parents of Pre-Kindergarten 3-year-old program and Head Start students will be notified of transportation service by the appropriate program office.
• Minor Daniels Academy, Breckinridge Metropolitan High School, and Teenage Parent Program (TAPP) students will be notified by the school of bus stop locations and times.
• If you have questions concerning bus routes, call your child's school or the Transportation Office at (502) 485-3470. After school starts, information may be more quickly obtained from the area bus compounds.
• JCPS provides transportation for students living more than one mile from school. Students living within a one-mile radius are not provided transportation unless unsafe walking conditions exist.
• Middle and high school students may be asked to walk up to one mile to a bus stop. Elementary school students may be asked to walk up to one-half mile to a bus stop.
• Residential streets with a reduced speed limit (25 m.p.h.) are considered walking areas.
• Bus stops are not scheduled on dead-end streets or courts.
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Childcare Enrichment Program and Daycare Stops

JCPS has established bus stops at numerous daycare and Childcare Enrichment Program (CEP) locations. Students must be enrolled in the designated daycare or CEP site to use these bus stops.
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Depot Information

A depot is a location for transferring students from one bus to another bus. On Bus Finder, some bus routes will show the words Depot and Transfer Bus. This indicates that this particular bus will go to a depot and students will change buses and then proceed to their assigned schools. The transfer bus is the bus that physically goes to the school from the depot each morning. In the afternoon, this is the same bus the student rides back to the depot from school. There are specific procedures for the operation of each individual depot. This information is given to students periodically throughout the school year, or you may contact the designated compound for more information.
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Second Run Information

Some buses have two runs at the same school. The order of runs in the afternoon is determined by time and mileage efficiency.
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Delayed Schedule

Announcements will be broadcast on radio and television should the district use a delayed schedule, early dismissal, or school cancellation.

A delayed schedule of one hour or a delayed schedule of two hours is used due to concerns of buses traveling on particular roadways during inclement weather.

Schools would delay opening by the announced one or two hours. Also, bus stop times would be one or two hours later. However, the bus stop location would not change.

Examples

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