The Advisory Committee on Student Transportation is composed of:

• The Director General or the Assistant Director General of the Board or delegate;
• The person responsible for the student Transportation Services of the Board;
• The principal of a school of the Board;
• A representative of the Parents’ Committee of the Board;
• Two school commissioners of the Board;
• A representative of the STM, the public transit authority on the Island
• A representative of the CIT, the public transit authority off-island

The Advisory Committee meets regularly and meetings are open to the public. This Committee provides input into the planning, coordination, financing and administration of the Board’s Student Transportation Organizational Plan.

The Student Transportation Organizational Plan (“The Plan”) is a document prepared by the Board’s Transportation Services. The Plan identifies the availability of services offered to students on any given upcoming school year.

The Plan contains:

• School Hours / Busing Schedules;
• Transportation Entitlement;
• Transportation Zones;

The Plan is determined on an annual basis, as it is dependent on funding regulations that are usually provided by the Ministry of Education in March or April for the following school year. Once the financial parameters are known, Administration develops the Plan and it is reviewed by the Advisory Committee on Student Transportation before its adoption by the Council of Commissioners.

Our timeline for creating and adopting the Plan and advising communities of any changes for the coming year occurs between April and May. However, this timeline may be delayed due to the Ministère de l’Éducation (règles budgétaires).

EDUCATION ACT:

The Government may, by regulation, establish the composition, mode of operation and functions of the Advisory Committee on Student Transportation.

REGULATION RESPECTING STUDENT TRANSPORTATION:

Functions of the Advisory Committee on Student Transportation:

• A committee shall give its opinion on each issue for which it must make a decision and on each issue submitted to it by the Board.
• An opinion must be given within 15 days of a request, unless the Board grants the committee a longer period of time.
• A committee shall give its opinion on the planning, coordination, financing and administration of student transportation.
• A committee shall give its opinion on the Student Transportation Organization Plan of the Board and on the terms

and conditions for the granting of contracts for the transportation of students, before the board adopts that plan or sets the terms and conditions for granting those contracts.

According to the same Regulation mentioned above, small grade school students and kindergarten children may sit three (3) to a seat. As a rule, two (2) children sit per benchs. Large buses are equipped with twelve (12) rows, two (2) benches on each side of the aisle, and hence twenty-four (24) benches. So, depending on the number of small children on any given bus the capacity will be from 48 students to a maximum of 72.

To ascertain your child’s transportation eligibility, please consult the following link – transportation eligibility. Students not eligible for school busing but desire to use a school bus must refer to the “Empty Seat” program via their Mozaik Portal.

According to the Policy, the few “Empty Seats” remaining in the transportation system are made available to those not eligible. Parents must apply yearly since the amount of space can vary from year to year.

The fee is set by Council in accordance with Article 292 of the Education Act. Please consult the following link – student transportation plan.

As per the Transportation Policy, bus stops are located at established intersections and not at or in front of residences.

You must consult your school/center for any change of address or address updates.

A student’s bus stop information is available on the Mozaik Parent Portal.

According to the Regulation respecting road vehicles used for the Transportation of school children (article 46,47,48) the aisle of the school bus must be clear at all time during student transportation. Since our buses are not equipped with self-contained storage compartments inside the bus, children are limited to two (2) small items (size of a school bag) that must be placed on their lap and/or between the legs of the child.

A school bag, a lunch box, a small instrument in its case or items of a similar size is permitted: maximum 2 items per child. No projects, no sticks, no skateboards.

As a rule, students are requested to be at their respective bus stops 10 minutes before their regular scheduled pick-up time. This is to avoid delaying the pick-up of other students.
Parents must make sure that if they leave their child alone at a bus stop, he/she will be able to return home safely should need arise.

Bus services cancelled:  There may be instances when the transportation company is unable to provide a regularly scheduled bus service for a particular route. In these rare instances, the transportation company informs the transportation department, and the transportation company communicates the bus cancellation with parents via email.
During times of inclement weather, buses may be late due to traffic or may be unable to proceed on certain streets; bus routes may not be completed as planned. Delays and any cancellations will be posted Delays and any cancellations alerthere.

School closures: When there is a need to cancel or suspend transportation due to inclement weather, the bus companies inform the transportation department, and the administration of the Lester B. Pearson School Board communicates the suspension of services and school/system closure to all parents/staff by email. Ultimately, it is the administration of the LBPSB that decides whether there will be a closing of schools/system.  If schools/system are closed, this will be posted on the school board website and parents/staff will receive an email from administration.

Buses are not designed like passenger vehicles. Following several tests under the supervision of Transport Canada, it was determined that seat belt usage resulted in injuries of greater severity.

For more information, visit the following site on the Web:

https://canadasafetycouncil.org/child-safety/there-need-seat-belts-school-buses

All drivers are required to follow and keep their First Aid Certificate active. They also are all trained to use the Epipen device. All buses are all equipped with two-way radios with a dispatch service able to contact Emergency services.