GALLOWAY BOARD OF EDUCATION                                                  FILE CODE: 3541.10

Galloway, New Jersey 

Policy

TRANSPORTATION ROUTES AND SERVICES

It is the intent of the Board of Education to transport children to and from school within the guidelines established by the New Jersey Department of Education and to assume responsibility for the welfare and safety of these children in the district on their trips to and from school.

The Board of Education shall transport all children who live more than two miles away from the assigned school as measured by calculating a mileage from the child's front door to the closest extremity of the school. Disputes regarding these calculations shall be resolved by a certified mileage check by the Galloway Police Department.

Annually, the Superintendent shall conduct a review of the transportation routes so that the most efficient hazard free, and convenient route and pickup points are established.

When a parent does not feel that the transportation arrangements are acceptable, he / she shall notify the Transportation Coordinator in writing of the special concern. The Transportation Coordinator shall review the complaint and determine if changes are warranted and may change a stop or modify a route if no additional cost results. If changes are warranted, the Transportation Coordinator shall make those changes within 48 hours, advising the parent, Superintendent, and bus contractor. The only exception shall be changes requested during the first full week of school, which shall not be implemented until the Monday of the week following. Any changes requested that will affect the cost of transportation contracts shall be referred to the Superintendent, who shall consult with the Board of Education before making a decision in such a matter.

Board of Education members who receive complaints directly shall submit them to the Superintendent or direct the resident to the Superintendent's office.

It shall be recognized that the Board of Education cannot provide "door to door" service in such a vast population area as Galloway Township: therefore, stops shall be established for several students living within the same proximity. On those occasions where a stop has only one student, the Superintendent or his / her designee may have the student transported from directly outside his/ her home if the route is not affected. Such arrangements shall continue only until such time that another student is assigned to the bus stop previously assigned to the student designated above.

Generally, a child shall be transported to and from the same bus stop daily.  There shall not be different stops on different days or for special events. Students are not permitted to ride home on other student's buses.  If students need to go to a friend's house, parents need to make other transportation arrangements. Generally, a child should be required to walk no more than three-quarters of a mile from the bus stop to his/her home. If necessary, a new bus stop will be established to meet the intentions of this policy.

Exceptions to the single stop will be granted as follows:

1. Parents / Legal Guardians must live in the same school zone.

2. Must be the same schedule every week. Adjustments may be made with advance notice.

3. This exception only applies to joint custody situations.

4. The district will only accommodate the request if space is available on both buses.

5. If either bus becomes full during the year, the exception will become void.

Babysitter Stops

1.  Two separate buses will only be allowed for long term babysitter arrangements for Kindergarten through 8th Grade

2.  Student must ride one bus in the AM and the other bus in the PM every day of the week.

3.  Both bus stops must be in the same school zone and be an existing stop, additional stops will not be added to the route.

4. The district will only accommodate the request if sufficient space is available on both buses.

5. If either bus becomes full during the year, the exception will become void.

6. Long term babysitter form must be submitted to the Transportation Coordinator for review and if approved will take 48 hours to implement.

Pre-K and Kindergarten

Students in Pre-K and Kindergarten must be met by a parent, guardian, or designated individual at the assigned bus stop. The request to use a designee must be submitted in writing and approved by the district.  If no parent, guardian, or designated individual is at the stop, the child will be transported back to school at the end of the run and placed in the district's Child Care Program. There will be an appropriate fee charged for child care.

Waiver of Eligible Transportation Services

Each school year a parent/guardian of a pupil who is eligible for transportation services under the law may sign a written statement waiving the pupil's right to those services. This written statement shall be in the form that is determined by the Department of Education.

If there is a case of a family or economic hardship during the school year in which the parent/guardian has waived the pupil's transportation service rights, the district will make provisions to provide transportation to the pupil during this hardship.

Courtesy Transportation Along Hazardous Routes

The Galloway Township Board of Education is concerned with the safety of students who walk to and from school along roadways determined to be hazardous routes.  The chief school administrator shall work in conjunction with municipal officials to determine the criteria necessary for the classification of a hazardous route and shall maintain a list of all hazardous routes in the district.  The chief school administrator shall develop rules and regulations to supply courtesy transportation for students who must walk to and from school along routes designated by the Galloway Township School District to be hazardous routes.  The criteria used to determine hazardous routes may include but shall not be limited to the following:

A. Population density;

B. Traffic volume;

C. Average vehicle velocity;

D. Existence or absence of sufficient sidewalk space;

E. Roads and highways that are winding or have blind curves;

F. Roads or highways with steep inclines and declines;

G. Drop-offs that are close proximity to a sidewalk;

H. Bridges or overpasses that must be crossed to reach the school;

I. Train tracks or trestles that must be crossed to reach the school;

J. Busy roads and highways that must be crossed to reach the school.

Students who would otherwise be required to walk to and from school along routes designated as hazardous shall be included in the calculation of the district's regular vehicle capacity utilization.