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3541.3(a)
Business/Non-Instructional Operations
Transportation
Routes, Stops, and Services
The Board of Education is legally responsible for providing transportation accommodations to resident
children. Transportation shall be furnished without charge in accordance with state laws.
Students shall be provided with safe transportation to and from their assigned pick-up/drop-off points and
their schools.
The Superintendent or his/her designee is responsible for planning and approving bus routes, bus stops, and
schedules, including all changes throughout the year, and for arranging special education transportation for
students as required.
Bus routes shall be published annually a minimum of two weeks prior to the first day of school.
Parents/guardians shall be notified in writing at least one week in advance of changes to their bus route that
may occur throughout the school year, except in cases of emergencies involving student safety.
School bus rated seating capacity shall not be exceeded.
Buses shall stop only at stops designated within the published bus route or as changes by the Superintendent
or his/her designee.
Bus drivers shall refuse transportation to any student that is not assigned to his/her bus as a regular passenger
unless presented with a bus pass from the school office.
Transportation will not be provided to out-of-town schools except as required by statutes.
Students in Kindergarten through second grade must have a parent or other responsible adult present at the
bus stop in order for the child(ren) to be left off the bus. If there is no adult present the student will be
brought back to school for pick up.
Definitions
1. “Bus stop” means a geographical location designated by the School Administration
where pupils can safely wait for purposes of boarding or disembarking a school bus.
2. “Grade K” means kindergarten, or a school program appropriate to a beginning student.
3. “One mile walking distance” means a reasonable measurement of a route to be traversed
extending from the point of measurement at least 5,280 feet, but not more than 5,380 feet.
4. “Student” means any individual of school age enrolled in a public or nonprofit private
school located within the Colchester School District.
3541.3(b)
Business/Non-Instructional Operations
Transportation
Definitions - continued
5. “Raised walk area or sidewalk” means a portion of the landscaped right of way at least
three feet wide, usually parallel to the traffic lanes which may be paved or unpaved,
distinguished by some elevation above the street pavement level and marked by curbing,
drainage ditch, grass area, or fencing; apart from and independent of any white line
safety markings along the street pavement.
6. “School transportation” means the procedure, program, or fully effective and
implemented plan by which a student is conveyed to or from school from home or the bus
stop at public expense, whether by use of publicly owned equipment or by contract. Such
transportation shall be over public roads approved by the applicable municipality or
private roads approved pursuant to Section 10-220c of the Connecticut General Statutes.
7. “Walking distance” means the linear measure of a prescribed or authorized pedestrian
route between the student’s residence and his/her school from a point at the curb or edge of a public road
or highway nearest the student’s residence to the nearest allowable access of the school, or the bus pickup
area; or the route from the point on the public thoroughfare nearest the residence to the school bus
embarkation point established by the Board of Education.
8. “Hazard” means a thing or condition, as prescribed in these guidelines, affecting the
safety of students walking to and from school or the bus stop.
Maximum Walking Distances
1. The maximum walking distance from home or daycare to a prescribed bus stop/point of embarkation is
as follows:
a. For all students enrolled in K-5, driveway to driveway.
b. For all students enrolled in Grades 6-8, three tenths of a mile.
c. For all students enrolled in Grades 9-12, three tenths of a mile.
2. The maximum walking distance from home or daycare to the nearest allowable school
entrance is as follows:
a. For all students enrolled in K-5, one tenth of a mile.
b. For all students enrolled in grades 6-8, three tenths of a mile.
c. Students enrolled in grades 9-12, three tenths of a mile.
Hazardous Conditions
1. A street or road having an adjacent or parallel sidewalk or raised walk area shall be deemed
hazardous when any one of the following conditions exists:
a. For students under age ten, or enrolled in grades K through 5, absence of pedestrian
crossing light or crossing guard where three or more streets intersect, and at street
crossings where there are no stop signs or crossing guards and the traffic count during
the time that students are walking to or from school exceeds sixty vehicles per hour at
the intersection;
b. For students over age ten, or enrolled in grades 6 through 12, the absence of a traffic
light or stop signs or crossing guard where three or more streets intersect or has a
traffic count which exceeds ninety vehicles per hour during the time that students are
walking to or from school;
3541.3(c)
Business/Non-Instructional Operations
Transportation
Hazardous Conditions - continued
c. For all students, any street, road or highway with speed limits in excess of forty miles
per hour which do not have pedestrian crossing lights or crossing guards or other
safety provisions at points where students must cross when going to or from school or the bus
stop;
d. For all students, the usual or frequent presence of any nuisance such as open manholes,
construction, snow plowed or piled on the walk area making walkways unusable, loading zones
where delivery trucks are permitted to park on walkways, commercial entrances and exits where
cars are crossing walking areas at speeds in excess of five miles per hour, and the like, including
such nuisance which is hazardous or attractive to children.
2. Any street, road or highway that has no sidewalks or raised walk areas shall be deemed hazardous if
any one of the following conditions exists:
a. For students enrolled in grades K through 5, any street, road or highway possessing a traffic
count of sixty or more vehicle per hour at the time that students are walking to or from school or
bus stop;
b. For all students, the presence of man-made hazards including attractive nuisances, as
stated in number 3 above;
c. For all students, any roadway available to vehicles that does not have a minimum
width of twenty-two feet;
d. For all students, any roadway available to vehicles when plowed free of snow
accumulations, does not have a minimum width of twenty feet; and
e. For students enrolled in grades K through 5, any street, road or highway possessing a speed
limit in excess of thirty miles per hour.
3. Any street, road or highway which has no sidewalks or raised walk areas shall be deemed hazardous
when the line-of-sight visibility together with posted speed limits do not permit vehicular
braking/stopping in accordance with the Connecticut Department of Motor Vehicles, Connecticut
Department of Transportation or other reasonable standard.
4. A lake, pond, stream, culvert, waterway or bridge shall be deemed a hazard in the absence of
a fence or other suitable barrier fixed between the student and the water for students in grades
K through 5.
5. Any area adjacent to a roadway, walkway, sidewalk or bridge having a drop of three or more
feet per four feet of travel length on either side of the established lanes, the absence of a fence or other
suitable barrier shall be deemed hazardous for students in grades K through 5.
6. Walking to the bus stop at any time prior to forty-five minutes before sunrise or any time one half hour
after sunset shall be deemed hazardous for students in grades 6 through 12.
7. These guidelines are applicable to private roads approved for passage of school transportation vehicles
in accordance with Section 10-220c of the Connecticut General Statutes.
8. Exception: The Board of Education may grant an exception to any provision of these guidelines
wherein a peculiar condition or combination of conditions renders such condition(s) a hazard based upon
reasonable judgment.
3541.3(d)
Business/Non-Instructional Operations
Transportation
Transportation to and/or from other than a pupil’s home address
Bus transportation shall be provided to and from the assigned bus stop. All students who are transported shall
ride to and from school on buses to which they are assigned. Transportation is not provided for recreational,
social, or non-school sponsored after-school activities. Exceptions may be made by school administration
only for consistent daycare needs or student employment provided that:
• The child is picked up from the same location every day, Monday through Friday and is dropped off
at the same location every day, Monday through Friday. The two locations do not have to be the
same.
• A waiver is obtained from the District Transportation Coordinator. This waiver will allow two
consistent bus stops solely for daycare due to parent/guardians’ employment or continuing education.
Students will not be assigned to more than a total of two buses. Verification of employment or course
enrollment will be required upon request by the District Transportation Coordinator. Waivers will be
valid for one school year providing that all requirements are continuously met. Waivers will be
granted by the District Transportation Coordinator not to exceed bus capacity.
FOR EXAMPLE: A student may take the bus from home in the mornings on Monday, Wednesday,
and Friday and go to his/her daycare provider those afternoons. On Tuesday and Thursday
mornings that same student may be picked up from the same daycare provider and take the bus
home those afternoons. This schedule shall be adhered to throughout the school year.
• The parent/guardian submits a “District Transportation Form” or a “Student Employment
Transportation Form” to the school administration annually.
• The parent/guardian notifies the school administration of permanent changes in the consistent
daycare or student employment, at least twenty-four hours in advance of the change.
Transportation issues resulting from unanticipated family emergencies shall be handled by the school
administration and/or the District’s Transportation Coordinator on a case-by-case basis.
Special Needs Transportation
In the event that a student’s physician identifies a special transportation need, the following guidelines must
be met:
• Parent/guardian must obtain a written request from the child’s physician indicating that special needs
transportation is required and the duration of the special transportation.
• This request for special needs transportation will be forwarded to the Department of Pupil Services &
Special Education for approval and implementation.
3541.3(e)
Business/Non-Instructional Operations
Transportation
Legal Reference: Connecticut General Statutes
10-186 Duties of local and regional boards of education regarding school attendance.
Hearings, Appeals to state board. Establishment of hearing board.
10-187 Appeal from finding of hearing board.
10-220 Duties of boards of education.
10-220c Transportation of children over private roads. Immunity from liability.
10-221 Development of policy for reporting complaints regarding school transportation
safety. Reporting of accidents at school bus stops.
10-273a et seq. Reimbursement for transportation to and from elementary and
Secondary schools.
10-280a Transportation for pupils in non-profit private schools outside school districts.
10-281 Transportation for pupils in non-profit private schools within school districts.
Chapter 248 Vehicle Highway Use.
14-275a Use of standard school bus required, when.
14-275b Transportation of handicapped students.
14-275c Regulations regarding school buses and motor vehicles used to transport
special education students.
14-280 Letters and signals to be concealed when not used in transporting children.
Signs on other vehicles.
Policy adopted: April 10, 2001 COLCHESTER PUBLIC SCHOOLS
Policy revised: May 15, 2007 Colchester, Connecticut
Policy revised: June 19, 2007
Policy revised: October 12, 2010
3541.3
Appendix A
Colchester Public Schools
Transportation Form
Name of Student: ________________________________________________________ Grade: _____ Date: _________
Address: _________________________________________________________________Phone: _________________
Primary AM Bus: Pick-up Information
Please check the days that apply.
Everyday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday
Name of Location: _____________________________________________ Phone #: _________________________
Location Address: ______________________________________________________________________________
Secondary AM Bus (if applicable): Pick-up Information
Please check the days that apply.
Everyday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday
Name of Location: _____________________________________________ Phone #: _________________________
Location Address: ______________________________________________________________________________
Primary PM Bus: Drop-off Information
Please check the days that apply.
Everyday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday
Name of Location: ____________________________________________ Phone #: __________________________
Location Address: ______________________________________________________________________________
Secondary PM Bus (if applicable): Drop-off Information
Please check the days that apply.
Everyday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday
Name of Location: ____________________________________________ Phone #: __________________________
Location Address: ______________________________________________________________________________
If you would like to transport your child to and/or from school on a specific day(s) on a
PERMANENT basis, please circle below.
My child will be a:
Pick-up: Everyday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday
Drop-off: Everyday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday
This form will allow two consistent bus stops solely for daycare due to parent/guardians’ employment or
continuing education. Students will not be assigned to more than a total of two buses. Transportation forms
will be valid for one school year providing that all requirements are continuously met.
I have read the above guidelines regarding Daycare Transportation and agree to follow the policy.
________________________________________________________ Date to be effective: __________
Parent Signature Date
Received by: __________________________________ Faxed to: M&J (537-2625) Transportation Coordinator (537-1252)
Revised: October 12, 2010
3541.3
Appendix B
Colchester Public Schools
Student Employment Transportation Form
This form must be completed if your child needs transportation to a place of employment.
Student Name: _________________________________________Grade: ___________
Address: _______________________________________________________________
Phone Number: __________________
Employer Information
Name of Company: _______________________________________________________
Address of Company: ______________________________________________________
Phone Number: _________________
Please check the days that employment transportation will be needed.
Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday
This form needs to filled out and sent to the Transportation Coordinator. Transportation to an employer
needs to be on a consistent basis. Please allow 24 hours for bus changes to become effective. Should the
employment status change at any time please notify the Transportation Coordinator immediately.
I have read the Employment Guidelines, listed above, and agree to follow the school policies regarding
bus changes.
_______________________ ____________________ _________
Parent/Guardian Signature Student’s Signature Date
_____________________________________________________________________________________
For Office Use Only
Primary Bus # ______ Bus# to employer ______
Approved by: __________________________________ Date: _____________
Please send to:
Transportation Coordinator
127 Norwich Ave
Suite 202
Colchester, CT 06415
P: (860)537-7269 F: (860)537-1252
Revised: October 12, 2010