Appendix G - Student Transportation Protocol
Active forms of travel (e.g. waking and cycling) and private transportation parents and caregivers are encouraged where possible to ease pressure on transportation demand.
School bus drivers must complete a COVID-19 self-assessment daily.
Drivers should not report to work if they have symptoms associated with COVID-19 or if they believe they have been exposed to COVID-19. They should report to an assessment centre for testing.
Students who have symptoms associated with COVID-19 or who believe they have been exposed to COVID-19 should not be taking student transportation and should remain at home. They should be taken to an assessment centre for testing.
Students who develop symptoms at school should not take the school bus home. Administrators are to contact parents/guardians to pick up their child at school.
Students, parents/guardians are to maintain a minimum distance of 2 metres between people when waiting at school bus stops.
Maintain physical distancing between students on school vehicles where possible.
To the extent that physical distancing may not be possible, the use of non-medical masks for students in grades 4 to 12 will be required on school vehicles. Students in kindergarten to grade 3 will be encouraged but not required to wear masks on student transportation.
Students should be assigned seats and a record of the seating plan should be kept to assist with contact tracing in the case of a student or driver contracting COVID-19. Student show live in the same household or are in the same classroom cohort should be seated together.
Where possible, the seat directly behind the school bus driver should remain empty to maintain physical distancing. Windows should be opened when feasible to increase ventilation.
Hand Hygiene
Bus drivers should wash their hands often, including before and after completing trips. Hand sanitizer should be available on the bus for drivers to use after any direct contact with students or assistive devices such as wheelchairs.
Students should be reminded to wash their hands with soap and water before leaving home, upon their arrival at school, when they are leaving school and when they arrive at home.
Bus Cleaning Protocols
Bus drivers are to be provided with personal protective equipment (as required by the operator’s health and safety protocol), disposable cloths, paper towels and absorbent materials, waste disposal bags cleaning agents and disinfectants.
Drivers are to wear disposable gloves when cleaning.
Bus interior surfaces are to be cleaned with disinfectant.
Use only cleaners and disinfectants as directed by the bus operator.
Use all cleaning products according to the directions on the label and per manufacturer’s guidelines (Safety Data Sheet).
Frequently touched surfaces (e.g. handrails, seatbacks) are to be disinfected at least twice daily.
Drivers are to dispose of soiled clothes, disposable gloves and any other items in contact with contaminated surfaces in the waste disposal bag. The bag is to be sealed and discarded in a lined trash bin.
Reusable cloths should be stored in a sealed bag until they can be laundered.
To the extent possible it is recommended that operators reduce the number of drivers per vehicle and ensure that the same drivers use the same vehicle and keep the same work schedule in order to limit contacts as much as possible.
School boards should support accommodations for immunocompromised and otherwise medically vulnerable students, and students with special transportation needs. (e.g. arrange separate vehicle, assign seating at front of school bus).
Personal Protective Equipment
Medical masks and face shields will be provided to school bus drivers, school bus monitors and student aides. The choice of PPE should not interfere with the driver’s ability to access vehicle controls, or hinder or distort the driver’s view, directly or through the mirrors, of the road, students around the bus, or passengers.