BUSING INFORMATION During the Saturday session of kindergarten registration, families and children will be able to board one of our school buses and learn all about school bus safety from one of our bus drivers! Who can ride the school bus? Children who live 1.5 miles or more from their assigned school ride for a FEE and children who live 2.0 miles or more from their assigned school ride for FREE. Children who live less than 1.5 miles from their assigned school are not provided with transportation. All eligible students will be mailed an Application for Student Transportation which includes the fee schedule with important ridership information. Most students will ride on a large yellow bus, but some students may also be transported on a small bus or by a school bus van. One application can be completed for ALL students residing in the household. The application is due in mid-August. Each student will be issued a Bus Pass Packet (clip-on pass, pick-up time and location and other instructions). Bus routes are not publicized for student safety. Students may need to walk a short distance to their bus stops. Payments can be made for the entire school year, or paid by trimester and fees are non-refundable. Accepted payment types: personal check or money order only. If your family qualifies for the Federal Free & Reduced Lunch Program and you’ve signed a Sharing of Information Form, the bus fee is waived. Please complete the application to determine eligibility. For an application or questions please call the Food Service Dept at (413) 5877050 For safety sake parents must be present at the bus stop. Alternatively you may authorize another adult to meet the bus or allow an older sibling to accompany your kindergartener. Please sign the applicable Consent Section on the Application for Student Transportation. Kindergarten students ride in the first few rows behind the driver and are closely supervised. Parents may choose to have their student sit with an older sibling or other family member. We are not able to accommodate requests for occasional alternative drop offs (play dates, monthly club meetings, etc). Bus Transportation is not available to and from before and after school programming. School Choice and Open Enrollment students are not eligible for bus transportation per School Committee Policy. For questions and additional information please contact (413) 587-1331 Ext 2 or visit our website at www.northamptonschools.org for bus transportation policies, fee schedule, bus application forms and safety information. Transportation Supervisor

DID YOU KNOW? School buses are designed to be safer than passenger vehicles in avoiding crashes and preventing Injury School buses are the safest mode of transportation for getting children back and forth to school School buses keep an annual estimated 17.3 million cars off roads surrounding schools each morning (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) Our drivers hold a DCL Class 2 license, have passed CORI, SORI and fingerprinting background checks, are trained in first aid, CPR, Epi-pen use, student behavior management and receive a minimum of 10 hours of professional development training each year. All buses are equipped with video monitoring