Cecil County Public Schools Transportation  

Welcome Back!

With the start of the 2012-2013 school year a lot of things have not changed. The county, state, and federal government budgets are still under difficult economic conditions; the higher price of fuel, oil, and tires continue to place pressure on the transportation budget while we try to preserve funds directed toward the classroom.

You can expect to see a continued focus of reducing miles and time on bus routes through routing efficiency, placement of stops and enforcement of the quarter mile separation between stops, reduction of stops inside developments and removal of interior service for those areas that no longer qualify.
We are attempting to expand our “Real Time GPS” as it has proven itself to help save money and provide useful data to both parents and students.
We are continuing with the sealed envelope for the bus information notification. Please review your Bus Stop Notice carefully for the location of the bus stop as it may have changed. Drivers are authorized to stop only at the bus stop location on your notice.

You should receive a Bus Stop Notice for each student enrolled starting August 9, 2012. If you fail to receive your bus stop information by August 15, please contact your school. Also as a reminder, if you have moved, make sure you notify the school. Student addresses (the address you report that the student departs from to go to the bus stop) are obtained from the school database. Based on that information, we place stops and assign student to those bus stops. If your student’s address is incorrect on the Bus Stop Notice, please contact the school first and allow one to two workdays for the student to be assigned to a bus stop.

Please discuss with your student the importance of proper bus behavior. Improper student behavior distracts the driver from watching the road and jeopardizes all the students on the bus. Reinforce your expectation of safe behavior while on the school bus. Your help and support will result in a safer, more pleasant ride to and from school for all students and will prevent your child from receiving negative consequences for unsafe behavior. Please understand that when students receive disciplinary consequences it is to reinforce safe behaviors so that they become safe bus riders.

Students need to be at the bus stop ready to load on time and be visible to the driver as the bus approaches the stop. They are safer at the stop before the bus arrives than running to the stop after the bus arrives. Drivers are required to slow and look for students at the authorized bus stop but are not required to stop if no one is visible. The student’s chances of missing the bus increase when they are not at the stop on time or visible to the driver. Please do not ask the driver for special stops or arrangements as that may subject the driver to disciplinary action.

Police continue to tickets motorists who do not stop for the red lights of the bus while it is loading and unloading because they were either inattentive or distracted and fail to recognize the red lights, or chose to disobey the law. It has gained more national attention as many states are passing tougher laws with increased penalties for violation. Remind your student to wait for the bus driver to signal it is ok to cross the road and LOOK both ways before crossing in front of the bus.

Thank you for helping Cecil County Public Schools support student safety.

If you have questions email CCPS Transportation WebMaster at WebMasterTrans@ccps.org