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largebus
Advanced Member
USA
468 Posts |
 Posted - 01/23/2002 : 11:35:59 AM
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How many kids ride the buses in your district as opposed to an alternative (driving, riding with friends/family, walking, public transportation etc)? Does your district demand that a certain number of kids ride? A lot of kids walk, get dropped/picked up or drive themselves but a significan number of kids do ride the bus. What are your guidelines in this area? Also for all field trips or athletic trips our district mandates that if school transportation is provided then the students NEED to ride the bus unless a note is given in certain circumstances. Some kids can always walk, but only a few can drive (only a few seniors and limited parking) and not everyone can be dropped off. In urban areas walking is more available and there is public transportation (buses, subways, commuter trains) available but I think a lot of kids are dependent on the buses. It's not right to think of buses as an alternative though-they really should be the priority route.
(Oh I forgot-according to our district if you are late and on a school bus that was stuck in traffic or whatever you're cool. If you're late any other way without a good excuse-stuck in traffic in a car-you're in trouble).
"If it's long, wide and high with wheels it's a bus. If it's yellow with black stripes it's a school bus"
Edited by - largebus on 01/23/2002 3:44:24 PM |
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wagonmaster
Top Member
USA
2298 Posts |
Posted - 01/23/2002 : 3:51:59 PM
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We only transport eligible (those over 2 miles from their school)students to and from school. Anybody that chooses not to ride is ok with us. High schools and Middle schools have their own activity buses for field trips and most sporting events. They control who rides and/or drives.
Joe
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John Farr
Top Member
USA
642 Posts |
Posted - 01/24/2002 : 3:50:52 PM
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k-8 have 1 mile walk zones, 9-12 2 miles. 9,000 of our 22,000 kids ride. We are suburban/urban in nature.
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largebus
Advanced Member
USA
468 Posts |
Posted - 01/24/2002 : 4:14:26 PM
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I believe there are 3 reasons to demand ridership of buses:
1) MONEY. Transportation costs $$$$$ and it has better to be used so the district or contractor isn't wasting money for busing few kids.
2) SAFETY. A school bus is undoubtadly the safest way to get to school, better than any alternative.
3) TRACKING/ACCOUNTING. All students can be tracked on their way into school, which is a huge conveniance and another safety issue. This was you can almost gurantee that the cherubs will make it in.
The main reasons students choose another form of transportation:
-They can bring some stuff in cars that the buses will not allow.
-The timing is more flexible.
-It's more comfortable than the bus.
-Less crowded.
-They want to be with friends.
Obviously not everything can be changed to force students to ride the bus. But there are good reasons for students to ride the buses. Some incentives-bribe type or threat type could be done to convince them to choose the bus as a primary transport and not as a secondary thing (this applies most to high school students and parents).
-Attendance procedures like I mentioned earlier.
Any more ideas on this issue of encouraging ridership would be greatly appreciated. Thanks
Edited by - largebus on 01/24/2002 5:06:46 PM |
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Debusguy
Senior Member
USA
114 Posts |
Posted - 01/25/2002 : 05:36:09 AM
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In a rural district that is quickly becoming suburban, with the associated increase in affuent families, more and more students opt to drive when they reach their junior year. I don't think there is any program that will get these students back on a bus, although the price of gasoline can have definitely have an effect.
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UncleNeal
Senior Member
USA
153 Posts |
Posted - 02/15/2002 : 07:19:05 AM
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Our parents must pay for a bus pass to allow students to ride the school bus. Last year, the school board decided that rather than add another bus route, we would limit the number of bus passes sold to eliminate crowded buses. So, we have a waiting list of 5 or 6 students on almost every bus route... We are transporting around 580 students on regular ed bus routes. If we have a major increase in demand, we will have to hire another driver for an additional route. Other than that, we have basically the same walking distance as other school districts, except that we have a major highway which is the main artery and there are no sidewalks, so we encourage students to take our bus as much as possible.
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kd4jfd
Top Member
USA
1170 Posts |
Posted - 02/15/2002 : 6:44:23 PM
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Uncle Neal, how does your district justify these "passes"? If I were one of your parents and I wanted/needed my kid to ride the bus, I would expect you to transport them because of school taxes, that pay for buses. Does your district have some sort of policy that covers this?
349 - A repair work in progress! |
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kd4jfd
Top Member
USA
1170 Posts |
Posted - 02/15/2002 : 6:46:35 PM
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In my district there is very little walking. The few students who live close to any of the schools usually can catch a bus that is going by thier house, unless they are suspended.
349 - A repair work in progress! |
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Ridership Priorites
