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Transportation

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Marshall ISD offers the privilege of bus transportation for all eligible students. Eligibility is determined by application of Board policy. We believe that our bus service enhances the learning experience of each student.

Every effort will be made to provide safe, comfortable and pleasant transportation service, while maintaining appropriate levels of efficiency.

Effective transportation service requires cooperation among bus drivers and staff, school administrators, students and parents or guardians. We will not allow any person (adult or student) to stop the District from providing a safe, comfortable and pleasant ride.

Transportation rules and procedures are provided so you can be familiar with our expectations and the transportation procedures.

REGULAR SERVICE INFORMATION

Eligibility

Transportation is available for children who live two miles or more from their assigned school. The distance a student lives from their assigned school is determined by measuring from the curb at the front of the school to the curb in front of their home using the closest paved street. Students residing within two miles of their assigned school may have transportation available if their neighborhood qualifies as hazardous under the district's hazardous transportation rating system.

Some students who attend more than one school to participate in vocational programs or classes not offered at their school are transported between schools during school hours. Special education students are eligible for transportation if need is established through the Admission, Review, and Dismissal process.

Pick-Up Time Criteria

Regular transportation attempts to arrive at every bus stop on time. Due to the variances between individual clocks, students are asked to arrive at the bus stop 5 minutes prior to the scheduled arrival time. Buses will load students and depart the stop. Regular buses do not wait for late students under most circumstances. Special needs transportation follows much the same criteria but will wait up to 3 minutes at the stop for the student to load. All buses will wait 7 minutes at the school in the afternoon for students to board. Students are expected to proceed immediately to the buses. Bus drivers are instructed not to stop or open the door for late students due to safety concerns having students too close to moving bus wheels.

Daily Service Criteria

Regular transportation is scheduled to provide service to student riders. Bus stops that do not have riders for 3 days may be suspended temporarily for lack of ridership to conserve district resources. Infrequent riders should contact the Transportation Department stating their wish to ride when service is needed if their bus stop has historically low ridership to verify stop time and location.

Bus Route Criteria

Route Design: Bus routes are created to enhance student safety while maximizing vehicle efficiency. Stops are created that allow students to wait off the main roadway for the bus if at all possible. Stops are also created to minimize students walking in highly traveled roadways for long distances without sidewalks. Stops are not placed in dead end streets whenever possible to minimize bus accidents while backing (Backing is a very dangerous maneuver for a school bus). Stops are spread as far apart as criteria will allow in order to decrease the number of stops each bus will make on its route thus minimizing riding time for the students.

Elementary students may be required to walk up to 1/10 of a mile to a bus stop. Secondary students may be required to walk up to 1/3 of a mile. Bus routes are designed to limit student ride time to no more than 45 minutes one-way if at all possible, however, most students ride under 30 minutes one-way.

The above design criterion is for regular students only. Students in special programs are subject to different design criteria. Contact the Transportation Department for additional information.


Bus Ridership Capacities

School buses are rated by manufacturers to have a capacities based on three riders per seat. Marshall ISD has adopted maximum ridership per bus at 3 riders per seat at elementary levels, 2 riders per seat at middle school levels, and 2 riders per seat at high school levels.

Special Needs Service Information

We are pleased to provide quality educational services for your children. Our mission in Special Needs Transportation is to ensure your child arrives at school and returns home safely with care and thought given to his/her individual needs. Our success is a result of our commitment, skill, knowledge, understanding, and ability to communicate. All drivers and assistants participate in frequent in-service training to expand and improve their driving skills and upgrade their knowledge of helping children with special needs.

Communication

In our system, everyone works hard to communicate needs and changes. When changes occur, routes must be revised and time changes communicated to all parents. Please plan to transport your child to and from school the first three (3) days if the Admissions, Review, and Dismissal Committee (ARD) and/or placement changes occur after school begins in August. After the ARD, the driver will call you within three (3) days to:

• Introduce him/herself and the assistant;
• Tell you how and when you can reach them; and
• Establish times and location for your child's pick-up and drop-off.

As a parent, you can help support our mission by:

1. Attending your child's ARD committee meetings and Annual Reviews.

2. Completing the Special Needs Transportation Information Sheet.

3. Ensuring a responsible person is home when your child is picked up in the morning and brought home in the afternoon. (Drivers assume responsibility at the door of the bus in the morning and will not release the child until they see the responsible person after school.)

4. Having your child ready to board the bus within three (3) minutes of scheduled time each morning.

5. Calling Dispatch at 903-927-8753 and making an appointment to speak with the driver rather than delay them in route to transport other students.

6. Teaching your child to follow the bus rules. (A copy will be provided to you.)

7. Notifying the Transportation Dispatch 903-927-8753 as early as possible when your child will not be attending school. An answering machine is provided so that you may leave messages after hours if necessary. Failure to ride 3 consecutive days will result in termination of service until the parent/guardian calls the Transportation Office and reinstates the service.

8. Sharing information with the driver and/or assistant regarding changes in schedule, medical status or major personal disruptions that would seriously affect your child's behavior.

9. Communicating in writing any medical information, medication or student health status changes which would affect your child's transportation.

10. Being open to information form the driver or assistant regarding their observations and concerns.

11. Making sure your child goes to the restroom before boarding the bus.

12. Maintaining consistent day care. (Frequent changes adversely affect bus schedules for all students assigned to the bus.)

13. Remembering that students in wheelchairs must have properly operating lock brakes, foot rests, arm rests, and a safety belt.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

1. What happens if I'm not home to receive my child after school?
If no one is home to receive your child when the driver arrives, the driver will continue with the route, keeping your child on the bus until the other children have been transported. Then the driver will make an attempt to leave your child at your home one more time. If no one is home after the second attempt, the driver will bring the child to the Transportation Center upon completion of the route.

2. Why does it take up to three days to begin transportation services for my child?
When a new student is added to or dropped from a driver's list, the time of pick-up and drop-off changes for all students. Parents need information as quickly as possible to adjust to changing pick-up and drop-off times. The driver also needs information about their children before transporting them. The three day lead between notice and start of transport allows for necessary information processing.

3. Why must my child be on the bus so long?
Door-to-door service requires the drivers to go to multiple locations (as many as 10 - 15) spread out over a large geographic area, and transport students to locations that are often far away from the child's home attendance school. Our goal is for no student to be on the bus for more than one hour each way.

4. Whom do I call when I have questions or concerns?
If you have questions or concerns about transportation services for your child, please call the Transportation Department at 903-927-8753.
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