Kansas school bus drivers helped 191,379 Kansas students roll safely to their destinations during the 2022-2023 school year.
To help honor those 9,087 school bus drivers, USD 231 joins the Kansas State Department of Education (KSDE) in celebrating Kansas School Transportation Appreciation Day on Wednesday, Oct. 18.
Kansas School Transportation Appreciation Day falls within National School Bus Safety Week, which is Oct. 16-20. This year’s theme is “Safely Rolling to My Destination.”
National School Bus Safety Week takes place the third full week of October each year as a way for parents, students, teachers, motorists, school bus operators, school administrators and others to join forces and address the importance of school bus safety.
Kansas school bus drivers drove a combined total of 85.8 million bus route miles during the 2022-2023 school year and nearly 10 million miles for activity trips.
Nationwide, more than 25 million children climb aboard yellow school buses every day. These buses serve as a direct link between neighborhoods and classrooms and carry the most precious cargo – our students. So, it’s important to keep school bus safety at the forefront.
Transportation employees play an integral role in the safety of Kansas children. That is why it’s so important to honor their dedication and expertise, the Kansas State Department of Education’s School Bus Safety Unit said.
Here are a few tips from NAPT to keep Kansas children safe at the bus stop:
- Make sure children leave home on time so they can arrive at the bus stop before it is due, ideally at least five minutes early. Running after or in front of a bus is dangerous.
- Walk young children to the bus stop or encourage children to walk in groups. There is safety in numbers; groups are easier for drivers to see.
- Practice good pedestrian behavior. Walk on the sidewalk, and if there is no sidewalk, stay out of the street. If you must walk in the street, walk single file, face traffic and stay as close to the edge of the road as you can.
- Stop and look left, right and then left again if you must cross the street. Do the same thing at driveways and alleys. Exaggerate your head turns and narrate your actions so your child knows you are looking left, right and left.
- Warn children that if they drop something getting on and off the bus, they should never pick it up. Instead, they should tell the driver and follow the driver’s instructions.
- Remind children to look to the right before they step off the bus.
- If you meet your child at the bus stop after school, wait on the side where the child will be dropped off, not across the street. Children can be so excited to see you after school that they dash across the street and forget the safety rules.