Policy 5730 – Transportation of Students

Transportation Limits

Transportation services shall be provided to meet the needs of the students of the District within specified limits and areas established by the Board of Education.

Pupil transportation is a service provided by the Greater Johnstown School District for certain pupils with disabilities and to those resident public and private school pupils in grades Kindergarten through 12 who live within the mileage ranges specified below:

1. Students in Kindergarten whose home school is located ½ (one-half) mile or more from their legal residence
2. Students in Grades One through Eight whose home school is located 1 ½ (one and one-half) miles or more from their legal residence
3. Students in Grades Nine through Twelve whose home school is located 2 ½ (two and one-half) miles or more from their legal residence

Parents/legal guardians of students who are not eligible for bus transportation are responsible for (a) overseeing their child(ren) as they walk to school, or (b) providing their own transportation for their child(ren). Students brought to school by car are to be discharged and picked up in designated areas as determined by the building principal.

Requests For Transportation to and From Non-Public Schools

The Greater Johnstown School District will provide transportation to parochial, private or charter schools as long as such school is within 15 miles of the child’s legal residence, the child legally resides within the district, and the child is eligible for transportation to their home school based on the criteria above. The parent or guardian of a child residing in the School District who will attend a parochial,  private or charter school and desires that the child be transported to such a school during the next school year must submit a written request to the Board no later than April 1 of the preceding year, or within 30 days of moving into the District.  No late request of a parent or guardian shall be denied where a reasonable explanation is provided for the delay. No late request will be granted if the District will incur additional costs to accommodate the late request. The District will publish the April 1 date in its school calendar and/or local newspaper as a reminder to parents of this deadline.

Transportation to Nonpublic Schools on Holidays

The District will share its calendar and start and dismissal times with nonpublic schools before the start of the school year. The District is not required to provide transportation to nonpublic schools on days on which the District’s schools are not in session.

Transportation for Nonpublic School Students with Disabilities who are Parentally Placed

For students with disabilities, ages 5 through 21, who are parentally placed in nonpublic schools outside their district of residency, if special education services are to be provided to a student at a site other than the nonpublic school, the school district of location is responsible for providing the special education services, including, as applicable, arranging and providing transportation necessary for the student to receive special education services.

The district of residence remains responsible to provide transportation to parentally placed nonpublic school students from the student’s home to the nonpublic school.

Transportation of Students With Disabilities

Transportation of students with disabilities in the District may not exceed 50 miles one way from the student’s home to the appropriate special service or program, unless the Commissioner certifies that no appropriate nonresidential special service or program is available within 50 miles.  In that event, the Commissioner may then establish transportation arrangements.

Student Information

Upon written consent of the parent or person in parental relation, every school bus which is used to regularly transport students with disabilities will maintain the following information about each student with a disability being transported:

1. Student’s name;
2. Nature of the student’s disability;
3. Name of the student’s parent, guardian, or person in parental relation and one or more telephone numbers where that person can be reached in an emergency; and/or
4. Name and telephone number of any other person designated by such parent, guardian, or person in parental relation who can be contacted in an emergency.

This information will be used solely for the purpose of contacting the student’s parent, guardian, person in parental relation, or designee in the event of an emergency involving the student, will be kept in a manner which retains the privacy of the student, and will not be accessible to any person other than the driver or a teacher acting in a supervisory capacity.  In the event that the driver or teacher is incapacitated, this information may be accessed by any emergency service provider.

This information will be updated as needed, but at least once each school year and will be destroyed if parental consent is revoked, the student no longer attends the school, or the disability no longer exists.

Fire Extinguishers

School buses manufactured on or after January 1, 1990 fueled with other than diesel fuel and used to transport three or more students who use wheelchairs or other assistive mobility devices or with a total capacity of more than eight passengers and used to transport these students will be equipped with an engine fire suppression system.

School buses manufactured on or after September 1, 2007 fueled with diesel fuel and used to transport three or more students who use wheelchairs or other assistive mobility devices or with a total capacity of more than eight passengers and used to transport these students will be equipped with an engine fire suppression system.

School buses will also be equipped with at least one hand fire extinguisher in the event of an emergency.

Transportation of Non-Resident Students

Non-resident families must provide their own transportation.

 Transportation to School Sponsored Events

Where the District has provided transportation to students enrolled in the District to a school sponsored field trip, extracurricular activity or any other similar event, it will also provide transportation back to either the point of departure or to the appropriate school in the District unless a student’s parent or legal guardian has provided the District with written notice, consistent with District policy, authorizing an alternative form of return transportation for the student. In cases where intervening circumstances make transportation of a student back to the point of departure or to the appropriate school in the District impractical, and the parent has not authorized alternative return transportation, a representative of the District will remain with the student until the student’s parent or legal guardian has been contacted and informed of the intervening circumstances and the student has been delivered to his or her parent.

Transportation in Personal Vehicles

Personal cars of teachers and staff will not be used to transport students except in the event of extenuating circumstances and authorized by the administration.

 Before and/or After School Child Care

1. Transportation to or from before- and/or after-school child care will be permitted upon proper, timely application of the parent(s) of an affected child.  Such applications must be received by the District no later than April 1, preceding the next school year, or within 30 days of establishing residency for new residents.  The definition of “before-and/or after-school child care” includes day-care centers, family day-care homes, and in-home care by non-relatives.
2. Transportation will be provided only if the day-care is located on as established transportation route within the Greater Johnstown School District and only if the child is eligible for transportation between his/her home and school.
3. Transportation for non-resident children attending a child care center located within the District is the responsibility of that child’s parents.
4. New requests for transportation or any change in the transportation request made after April 1 will not be accepted unless a reasonable explanation is offered or unless the transportation can be provided under the existing transportation arrangements and without additional expense to the District.
5. For a change of child-care location on a temporary basis, parents will be responsible for the transportation of their children. Parents must also notify the school office in writing that their child(ren) will not be transported by school bus. Parents or legal guardians are provided with the opportunity to designate, in writing, other individuals authorized to sign-out their children for the purpose of transportation.

Parents Picking up Children who Normally Ride Buses

Parents who will be picking up children who normally ride buses should inform the school as soon as possible, but not later than 1:00 p.m., by telephone or written request. The parent will need to provide his or her personal identification number and other identifying information when calling the school to request such a change.  Calls after 1:00 p.m. cannot be accommodated and parents should plan on meeting their children at the regular bus stop.  Provisions for genuine emergencies follow.

Emergency Situations

An example of an emergency situation would be a child-care provider being called away from the drop-off location due to an emergency of his or her own on such short notice that the parent, legal guardian or other authorized individual would not be able to pick up the child by 3:15 p.m.  There are three provisions for such situations:

1. The parent may call the school office to authorize another individual to provide transportation for that day only. The parent will need to provide his or her personal identification number and other identifying information.
2. The child will be kept at school until an authorized individual arrives at the school to pick up the child.
3. The parent may designate another residence or bus stop on the same bus and route for his or her child to be dropped off on that particular day. Securing the permission of the other resident is the sole responsibility of the parent. The school will presume that such permission has been granted for that day.

Education Law Sections 1604, 1709, 1804, 1903, 1950,
2503, 2554, 2590-e, 3242, 3602-c, 3621(15), 3623-a(2c), 3635, 4401-a, 4401(4), 4403, 4404, 4405 and 4410-6
Vehicle and Traffic Law Sections 375(20)(1) and 375(21-i)

NOTE: Refer also to Policies:

• 5710 Transportation Program
• 5731 Transportation of Students in Privately Owned Vehicles

Adopted:  4/25/01
Revised:  11/17/04
Revised:  10/02/08
Revised: 11/10/16
Revised: 08/27/20
Revised: 10/13/22
Revised: 07/06/23