ASHLAND INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT SCHOOL BUS

ASHLAND INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT

SCHOOL BUS GARAGE

1420 Berry Street, Ashland, Kentucky 41101

To Parents of Student Bus Riders:

From: Mac McDonald, Transportation Director

Welcome to the new school year. We will continue doing everything we can to ensure the safety

of all our school bus riders. As the Transportation Director I can assure you that we plan to take

every measure to ensure that your child’s transportation needs are as consistent and reliable as

humanly possible.

Please know that although we strive for perfection there will always be unavoidable

circumstances that may cause transportation delays, but we will do our best to minimize those

delays and to communicate them to you as early as possible. With that being said, we will

continue the business of making our district school bus transportation efficient by following the

following practices:

1. We do not practice door-to-door service within AISD. There will be designated

community stops for students to rally at. Door to door service can be very inefficient and

it is the responsibility of the school district to provide safe and efficient transportation to

the students.

2. The law does not require a parent to see the bus stop from home. Students in Kentucky

may be assigned to a bus stop up to one mile from their home. We encourage parents to

accompany their child to the bus stop whenever possible. Your child may be required to

walk up to 3 blocks, the standard for Ashland Independent School District uses the

following guidelines:

a. Elementary grades up to 1 block…

b. Middle School grades up to 2 blocks…

c. High School grades up to 3 blocks…

3. For those extenuating circumstances where door to door service is necessary your student

must be physically standing outside on the sidewalk for the driver to see as they are

pulling up.

4. If your child misses the bus in the morning their bus will not come back to get them, this

causes delays for the rest of the students and is not cost effective for the district. If your

child missed the bus, they should be driven to school, not to another stop.

5. Students missing their bus after school.

a. If a student missed the bus due to their own negligence the parent will need to

make arrangements to pick the child up at the school.

b. If a teacher holds a student after school for disciplinary reasons the parent will

need to make arrangements to pick the child up at the school.

c. If a student missed the bus due to educational reasons (i.e. tutoring) he or she

will have to wait until the bus driver completes their route before they will be

picked up by the bus. The teacher is responsible to notify the parent that their

child will be home late.

Please note that all students should be waiting at their bus stop five minutes before the expected

arrival of the school bus. Bus drivers count the students at the bus stop before they load and as

they get on the bus to ensure all students are accounted for and are safely on board. If students are

not waiting at the bus stop the bus driver cannot count them and cannot be certain all students are

safely on board. Waiting at the bus stop before the bus arrives ensures that no one chases after the

bus. It is dangerous to chase after the bus and may cause injury or even death to a student. AISD

school bus drivers are instructed not to stop at locations where no students are waiting.

Lastly, a parent cannot enter the school bus without the direct written consent of the school

district superintendent. Any issues or complaints should be directed to the transportation director

or their designee. The school bus is a safe zone for students and only those with proper

authorization will be allowed onboard the bus. Attempts to enter or delay the school bus will

cause other students to wait longer and may even put them in danger. The school bus is an

extension of the classroom and all rules of the school apply on the school bus as well.

Our #1 goal each day is to transport all student safely to and from school. In order to accomplish

this goal, we need the cooperation of students and their parents/guardians. Good student behavior

while entering, riding, and leaving the bus contribute in many ways to safe transportation. Such

conduct makes it possible for the driver to give full attention to the roadway and other drivers.

Please take a few minutes to review with your child the information below concerning student

conduct on the bus. The primary purpose of rules and regulations for students on the buses are for

the safety of all students. Your child’s cooperation in following all rules and procedures is

appreciated by the drivers.

You must make sure the school has the correct address where your child will be picked up and

delivered. Students will be required to ride the one bus to which they have been assigned. A

complete outline of our bus riding policy will be handed to each student during the first week of

school.

You should also know that we have installed cameras in every school bus. This will aide in the

safety of all students riding school buses.

For routing questions or problems concerning buses or drivers please call the Transportation

Department at 327-2717.

STUDENT CONDUCT ON SCHOOL BUSES:

School buses shall be considered an extension of the classroom and students are expected to

conduct themselves accordingly. Students being transported in school-owned vehicles shall

comply with the Student Code of Conduct. Behavior which is not permitted includes but is not

limited to the following:

1. Being disobedient or disrespectful to the driver/monitor.

2. Bullying

3. Standing or moving around while the bus is in motion.

4. Sticking your head or hands out of the bus window.

5. Throwing object(s) out of a window.

6. Loud talking or laughing

7. Using tobacco / vaping

8. Scuffling or fighting

9. Using obscene and/or unacceptable language

10. Littering the bus.

11. Disturbing others.

12. Eating or drinking on the bus.

13. Tampering with the bus and/or equipment.

14. Possessing or being under the influence of marijuana, alcohol, a controlled substance, a

dangerous drug, or a “look-alike” (something represented to be a prohibited substance).

Violations of the rules for Regulations for Student Riding School Buses shall result in the

following:

• First Offense: Driver shall issue a warning to the student and follow up with writing to the

Principal.

• Second Offense: Driver will move student to the front seat and notification will be sent to

parent/guardian by school principal.

• Third Offense: Principal warns student and parent or guardian in writing that riding

privileges could be revoked for a minimum of three (3) days.

• Fourth Offense: Principal suspends riding privileges for three (3) days.

• Fifth Offense: Elementary--Riding privileges will be suspended for five (5) days.

Middle and High School—Riding privileges will be suspended for ten (10) days.

• Sixth Offense: Elementary—Riding privileges will be suspended for ten (10) days.

Middle and High School—Riding privileges will be suspended the rest of the school year.

• Seventh Offense: Elementary riding privileges will be suspended for the rest of the school

year.

Note: Some offenses are of such a serious nature that they can be deemed to warrant suspension

of bus riding privileges without following the procedures outlined above.

*If a student endangers the safety of the bus or another student, immediate suspension may

result.

Lastly, I am excited to announce that in an attempt to minimize your stress as to when your

child’s bus will arrive we have purchased a program through the Traversa Routing Program,

currently called “Ride 360”; this program provides an app for your phone which will provide

information about your child’s bus route and pick up & drop-off times; simply download the

“Traversa Ride 360” app onto your phone. This parent app will also present you a 3-D screen

showing when your student’s bus is approaching the bus stop. Please review the attached

Traversa Ride 360 Parent User Guide Flyer for further information that will certainly enhance

your child’s transportation experience in AISD.

Please fill out the information below and return to the attending school stating that you and

your child have read and understand the above school bus rules and regulations. Your child

will not be permitted to ride the bus if this has not been returned to the attending school.

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This is to certify that we have read and understand the Ashland Independent School District’s

Bus Rules and Regulations

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Student Name (Print) Student Grade

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Physical Address Phone #

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Parent/Guardian Name (Print) Signature