Buses

Union is pleased to provide the Union Public Schools Bus Rider’s Guidelines found in the Elementary Handbook for students and parents. This handbook contains information about bus service, student behavior, safety and disciplinary guidelines, and other pertinent information. Although it is not possible to include all policies, practices and procedures concerning school transportation, this handbook does provide as much information as necessary to give you and your children a better understanding of the district’s bus service and the importance of bus rider safety and good behavior.

You should be pleased to know that school buses are still one of the safest forms of transportation. Despite this, there are steps that can be taken to make the ride to and from school even safer.

It is the district’s goal to provide the safest transportation possible.  One way we attempt to reach this goal is by providing training for our drivers, including initial training for new drivers and continuing in-service training.

All school bus drivers in the state of Oklahoma must be certified to drive by the State Department of Education. To obtain this certification, a driver must attend a 25- hour training course and successfully complete all written and driving examinations. The Union district also provides additional training of up to 40 hours each year.

Even though we emphasize bus safety and careful driving to our drivers, they cannot consistently drive the bus safely without the cooperation of the students. Bus safety is not just the driver’s responsibility but also the responsibility of all students who ride the bus as well.  Distractions such as student misbehavior can divert the driver’s attention from the road and jeopardize the safety of all passengers.

We will be counting on your help to instruct your child and reinforce the need to follow the bus driver’s directions and obey bus rules.

We hope you will find this handbook informative, and we wish your child a safe, happy and educational year.

Safety Outside The Bus 

• Do not be late to the bus stop and never run after the bus. 
• Stay on the sidewalk, away from the road.  Staying away from the road is the safe place to wait. 
• Never go into the danger zones, especially close to the front of the bus. 
• Tell the driver if you drop something.  It is dangerous if you bend down near the front of the bus or climb under the bus to get something you dropped. 
• Watch for the driver’s signal when it is safe to cross the street. 

Safety Inside The Bus

• Never put your head, arms or any other body part outside the windows.
• Don’t distract the driver when the bus is in motion.
• Take your seat and put your bags under the seat in front of you.

Please go over these questions together and make sure they know how to behave safely around the school bus: 

• When should you arrive at your bus stop?
• Where should you wait for the bus?
• If you drop anything near or under the bus, what should you do?
• If you are late and your bus is pulling away, what should you do?
• When you get off the bus, how many steps should you take before turning left or right?
• If you have to cross the street, how many steps in front of the bus should you take?
• What can happen if you put your arms or head out of the bus window?
• The wind blows your favorite hat off and it lands in front of the bus. What should you do?
• What can happen if you go inside the crossing gate?
• What can happen if you bang on the side of the bus?
• When you need to cross the street, what should you do?
• When you cross the street and you reach the center line of the road, what should you do?