Safekeeping of our Children

With Spartanburg District 7's Transportation Team, we hope to make your child’s school bus experience safe, pleasant and efficient.

Before the first day make sure your child knows his or her home address (street name and house number), telephone number and bus route number.

Please help your child understand and obey all school bus rules.  These rules appear in your child’s “Student Handbook”.  Here is some of the most important information to keep in mind.

1. Your child needs to begin riding the bus right away. We need to know exactly how many students will ride each bus as soon as possible.  For instance, new students may have moved to your area over the summer.  As a result, we may need to adjust bus pick-up times, drop-off times or even the route itself in order to make your child’s ride shorter and more comfortable.  We also use this information to justify additional routes or buses.
2. Your child’s bus route will stabilize within two weeks. Once this happens. There should be no more than a 10-minute fluctuation in times from day to day.
3. After the first 20 school days, state law prohibits the district from operating overloaded school buses. If we need to make some adjustments, we will do so after the first two weeks of school and notify you accordingly.

It is not unusual for pick-up and drop-off times to fluctuate by 10 minutes.  Because of this, please wait until your child’s bus is more than 10 minutes late before calling the appropriate Transportation Supervisor.

If you have questions/concerns, it would be helpful if you called after the morning bus routes. 

Parents/Guardians

All students must be registered and assigned a bus stop location prior to riding a school bus.  Once the transportation department receives your child’s registration form we have three days to evaluate a safe stop location, approve it, notify driver and establish a stop.  No one shall register and ride on the same day. 
Registered school bus riders are transported to and from home address. Students are not allowed to get on or off the bus at any other location. Phone calls will not be accepted/approved requesting a different stop location for a student. We realize emergencies occur, these situations will be addressed as needed. Request for changes to a pick up/drop off location must follow the process outlined below:(All requests must be received in the transporation office before 12 Noon on the date the change is needed) 
     *Parent submits written request to school principal
     *Principal verifies information and sends approval/denial to transporation office
     *Director of transportation will review request, verify seating/route availibility and notify school
     *School will notify parent/guardian

Parent/guardian or an adult authorized by a parent/guardian must be at the school bus stop to receive their kindergarten – first grade child.  Failure to do so will result in the child being returned to the school.  If this occurs three times, the child will be denied transportation for the remainder of the semester.  

No student is to cross a four lane roadway system at any time when engaged in school bus transportation services.  If your child’s bus stop location is across a two lane roadway, the student must wait for the bus to arrive, lights are flashing RED and the driver signals for the student to cross.  Students should be paying attention and listening to the driver when boarding, crossing a roadway or exiting a school bus, the driver is monitoring the situation and will alert them of any danger.  Students are not to wear any type of ear phones while boarding, crossing a roadway or exiting a school bus.