Driving a school bus is not an easy job. Drivers have to remain alert to road conditions, anticipate the actions of other vehicle operators, monitor bus gauges and monitor children’s behavior while riding the bus. To help our drivers provide the safest and most enjoyable ride to and from school, it is important to review the “Rules for a Safe Bus Ride” with your child.
Dispatch
The Dispatch office is the connection between the drivers and parents/school department to assure safe transportation daily. Dispatchers are responsible for creating bus routes, covering routes with drivers, communicating changes to drivers, help with maintenance scheduling, amongst other various responsibilities.
Dispatch offices are open while children are transported to schools on vehicles. Generally, 5:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, but each office will vary depending on students’ needs.
Address/School Changes
All student changes, whether it be permanent or temporary, are to be made with the School Department for which your child resides in. The School Department will notify NRT Bus of the change. (Some changes can take up to 48 hours to implement.)
Pickups and Drop-offs – Regular Education
Students should be at their bus stops 10 minutes prior to the scheduled stop time. Please make sure your child is standing at the stop site. (Students standing in doorways or sitting in cars are not always visible to drivers.) Buses are not scheduled to wait at stops for students that may not be ready.
Drop offs may also vary within 10 minutes of scheduled return times based on traffic and actual depart times from the schools. Kindergarten (and in some towns 1st graders) must have a parent at the stop to take the child off the bus.
If there is no parent at a stop for a student, the child will remain on the bus, while the office will make attempts to notify the parents. (This process is either done through the School Departments, Schools, or with attempts to call the parent directly.)
If your child does not get off at his/her schedule stop, please call the school your child attends. The school will contact the bus company for information if your child is not at the school.
Special Education
Students should be ready at their house 3 minutes prior to the scheduled stop time. Please make sure your child is dressed and waiting for the vehicle to pull up to the house. Vehicles will wait no more than 3 minutes at each stop.
Drop offs may also vary within 10 minutes of scheduled return times based on traffic and actual depart times from the schools. Parents must be at home to take the child off the bus.
If there is no parent at a stop for a student, the child will remain on the bus, while the office will make attempts to notify the parents. (This process is either done through the School Departments, Schools, or with attempts to call the parent directly.)
If your child has not gotten home within 15 minutes of the scheduled return time, please call your local dispatch office responsible for your child’s transportation.
Accident Procedure
In the case of an accident, NRT Bus will notify the police to proceed to the scene. Drivers will request an ambulance if necessary, and start filling out the enclosed accident kit on each vehicle. A manager from NRT terminal will head to the scene. School Departments will be notified for Regular Ed Students, and parents of Special Ed students and Daycare students will be phoned directly. School Departments will notify schools, and parents for which school/children were on the bus at the time of the accident.
Snow Policy
There are two possible scenarios which affect transportation of our students during inclement weather:
- We will not transport a student who attends a School in a City or Town which has cancelled their Public Schools for the day.
- We will not transport a student who lives in a City or Town which has cancelled their Public Schools for the day, even if their School in another area is open.