Frederick County Public Schools

FCPS has over 400 school buses in its fleet and transports about 31,000 students every school day. The walking distance to bus stops is no more than 0.5 miles. Parents are responsible for overseeing students as they walk to school or transport them if the most practical, direct walking route to school is longer than 1.25 miles for grades pre-K through 5 (except at primary schools) or longer than 1.75 miles for grades 6-12 (the Transportation Department and Superintendent may extend the distance as identified in BOE Policy 441). Parents of students enrolled in a school outside their attendance area are responsible for transporting their children.

Students may ride only their assigned bus. Inviting friends home on the bus makes it hard for schools and bus drivers to account for students and can cause bus capacity problems. In an emergency, principals may approve a parent's request to allow a child to ride another bus (bus drivers will need a note signed by the parent and school administration).

Transportation to jobs, social meetings, and other non-school events is a parental responsibility. If a bus needs to return a student to school for any reason, the school will notify their parent or guardian.

Schools must use FCPS vehicles to transport students from school to school, from school to extracurricular activities and on field trips. With written parent permission, principals may allow students to travel in vehicles driven by FCPS employees or authorized parents or, in the case of high school students, to drive themselves. Students can't drive other students to school-sponsored activities.

At the Bus Stop

Parents are responsible for the safety and conduct of their children from the time the children leave home until they board the school bus, and from the time they leave the bus until they reach home at the end of the day. Students can be disciplined for conduct at the bus stop if they jeopardize the safety of others or disrupt school operations. See BOE Policy 441.

1. Students should be at their bus stop at least 5 minutes before the bus is scheduled to arrive.
2. Students should act safely and stand well back from the roadway until the bus stops completely. Only then should they move toward the bus.
3. At the bus stop, students must respect the property of people who live nearby. No rough play, shoving or pushing. Parents are legally responsible for their children at the bus stop and are also liable for any damage they cause.
4. Students should get off the bus only at their designated stops.
5. When crossing the roadway to enter or exit a bus, students should walk approximately 10 feet in front of the bus and never behind it and cross only when the driver signals that all is clear.
6. Once buses start moving during school dismissal, students are not to chase or attempt to board them.
7. Students who miss the bus will need to find other transportation.

On the Bus

School bus safety is a shared responsibility that depends upon the cooperation of students, parents, drivers and school officials. Bus transportation is an extension of the school day. FCPS will not tolerate students preventing drivers from doing their job or preventing other students from having safe transportation. Video cameras on buses record images and sound, enabling FCPS to document behavior that infringes on others; these cameras and recordings are kept secure by authorized FCPS personnel.

Safety Is Priority--Students Must Obey the Rules

• Follow the driver's instructions the first time they are given.
• Stay in your seat at all times.
• Keep hands, arms, feet, legs and property inside the bus and to yourself, and keep your voice low.
• No eating, smoking, drinking or vulgar language
• Do not block the aisles or exits.
• Only those large items that can be held safely on your lap, placed on the window side of the seat beside you or placed on the floor between your feet may be brought onto the bus. Items that are sharp-edged, glass or subject to spillage are not allowed. Animals, skateboards and scooters are not permitted.
• Students may use personal electronic devices on buses, in accordance with FCPS Regulations 400-08 and 400-18.

Consequences

• The driver will first give a verbal warning, using the student's name and the action for which the student is being warned.
• The driver then has the right to select and implement, in any order, one or more of the following actions: communication to parents, probation period and/or special seat assignment. Drivers are encouraged and have the authority to assign seats to students.
• A severe incident may call for a bus driver to refer the matter to the principal without taking the above steps.
• Suspension of school bus privileges.

For more information, please see Policy 441 and Regulation 200-14.

Resources

• Bus Safety Video
• Seguridad en el autobús
• Employee Area

Transportation Managers and School Assignments