Transporting Students to and from School

Busing

Bend-La Pine Schools operates transportation services for elementary students who live more than one mile from their schools and for secondary students who live more than 1.5 miles from their schools, as required by state law.

Students with special needs may qualify for transportation if they cannot access school without it. Special transportation requirements must be included in the child’s Individualized Education Plan (IEP).

All families must register their students for bus transportation. Please visit our Buses page for more information.

Only children eligible for transportation services will be transported. Parents/guardians may not ride buses with their students. Children who are not in school are not allowed to ride the bus. It is Bend-La Pine Schools’ goal to provide safe and economical student transportation.

There are responsibilities and rules for each member involved in the transportation system: staff, students and parents/guardians. We ask parents/guardians to become familiar with the rules and procedures and discuss them with their child.

Route Information

Bus route information is available at each school, the transportation offices in Bend and La Pine, and through the My Ride K-12 mobile app. Bus routes and stop times may be adjusted at any time. If your child fails to return home at the expected time, contact the school first. Please keep in mind there may be many reasons for a bus to be late on its route. A bus could be late if there is a substitute driver, if there are mechanical problems, traffic issues, inclement weather, or poor road conditions.

The Driver

To become an Oregon school bus driver, a person must meet very specific requirements established by federal and state law. Drivers for Bend-La Pine Schools are expected to manage student behaviors while operating the bus in a safe manner. Each driver has received several types of training. In addition to behind-the-wheel training, the drivers are required to attend ongoing instruction in first aid procedures and student behavior management.

Use of Charter Buses

Bend-La Pine Schools may utilize charter bus services as needed for student transportation. All charter services are provided by student activity bus certified providers, as authorized by the Oregon Department of Education.

Stopping for School Buses

School buses must follow all the traffic regulations that apply to individual motorists. Oregon school buses are equipped with flashing amber and flashing red lights near the top of the bus on the front and at the rear of the bus. The flashing amber lights are turned on to warn traffic that the bus is about to stop to load or unload children. When the red lights begin to flash, drivers traveling in either direction on any road, street, or highway must stop before reaching the bus and remain stopped until the flashing red lights are turned off. The school bus law applies if you are on any undivided highway with two, three, or four lanes of traffic.

Video Cameras

Video cameras are used on Bend-La Pine Schools’ transportation vehicles and may be used to monitor student behavior on Bend-La Pine Schools’ vehicles transporting students to and from school and extracurricular activities. Students in violation of district conduct rules shall be subject to disciplinary action in accordance with established Board Policies, Administrative Policies, and Administrative Regulations, and Oregon law governing student conduct and discipline. Any illegal acts videotaped on Bend-La Pine Schools’ vehicles will be turned over to the appropriate personnel and/or law enforcement authorities.

Students and Families

Bend-La Pine Schools has established a code of conduct and disciplinary procedures to ensure that students comply with safety rules while using the transportation system. The code of conduct includes a list of rules adopted by the Oregon State Department of Education, as well as a list of additional rules adopted by the district. Students and their parents/guardians should familiarize themselves with the code of conduct and procedures, which can be found at bls.fyi/policyreg in EEACC-AP and EEACC-AR: Student Conduct on School Buses.

The following items are not allowed on the bus: animals, glass containers, aerosol cans, skateboards (unless secured in a backpack), fishing poles, snowboards, hockey or lacrosse sticks, weapons or look-alike weapons, golf clubs, helium balloons, skis, shovels or laser pens.

Roller blades and shoes with wheels must be transported in a duffel bag or backpack. Craft projects must be in a bag or box. Any item used in an unsafe manner may be confiscated and the student must bring a parent/guardian to the transportation department office to retrieve it.

Student Ridership Technology

Bend-La Pine Schools offers My Bus Stop App. Parents/guardians and students can know where their school bus is and what time it will show up at their home stop, all from a smartphone, mobile device or computer.

Bend-La Pine Schools My Bus Stop graphically displays the location of the school bus on a map, as well as the estimated time of arrival (ETA) to a student’s bus stop. The bus location is automatically updated and the ETA is recalculated to accommodate any delays due to traffic while in route.

Families are also able to opt into a system that will allow them to be alerted when their child enters and exits the school bus with the new Radio Frequency Identification Device cards.

Learn more about these tools on our Buses page.