Buses

 No. A driver is only permitted to drop students off at the designated stop indicated on their route sheet. Student school bus rosters need to remain consistent for the safety of all.

No. A driver is only permitted to drop students off at the designated stop indicated on their route sheet. Student school bus rosters need to remain consistent for the safety of all.

We ask students to arrive at their assigned bus stop at least five minutes prior to pick up time so that they are ready and waiting for the bus to arrive. This helps to ensure a faster loading time. It also ensures that they are there in case the time on their clock or watch differs slightly from the time for the driver.

Despite our efforts to actively recruit and hire drivers, we are understaffed. When routes do not have an “assigned” driver, other drivers pick up the additional routes after they have completed their “assigned” route. Unfortunately, this causes delays in our route times. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause your families. Bus routes are planned to run on a fairly set schedule. Sometimes there could be traffic delays for various reasons. Sometimes children are not ready and waiting at earlier bus stops, which can cause the bus to run behind schedule on all future stops. This is another reason why we ask all children to be ready and waiting at their bus stops so we can minimize delays.

Your child should arrive at the stop at least five minutes before the regular arrival time of the bus. If there is a substitute driver, the times may not be absolutely consistent with the regular times. If the bus is late ask your child to remain at the stop. Buses can break down, roads can be blocked, a driver may be ill or have emergencies, etc. which may result in a late bus. If the wait becomes extreme (approximately 20 minutes), please call the Transportation Office at 847-963-3909/3912.

All District 15 buses operate on a comprehensive schedule, completing two or three routes in the morning and again in the afternoon. This helps to ensure that the system operates safely and efficiently, while working to deliver students to school on time. Because of the number of students needing transportation, and to ensure effective scheduling, the overall bus schedules cannot be adjusted to accommodate an individual request.

Buses cannot return for students who missed the bus. Please be sure your child arrives at the designated bus stop at least five minutes ahead of schedule.

At most schools, the drivers receive a signal from school staff when they can depart after a sufficient time has been allowed for students to exit the school to board the buses. Sometimes students are held up at school for unforeseen reasons and miss their school bus. Once buses depart the school, if the Transportation Department is notified that a child is left behind, every effort will be made to return for the student. However, if the bus is no longer in the proximity of the school the driver will not be able to return until the entire route has been completed.

Bus stops are placed at centralized locations that can be safely accessed by a significant number of students to minimize the time length and mileage of the run. If you have concerns about your child’s safety you are encouraged to accompany your child to the bus stop or arrange a neighborhood buddy to walk with your child.

Bus stops are placed to allow the buses easy access and egress through neighborhoods while keeping safety a priority. Bus stops are designed so that no child has to walk more than an average of two tenth of a mile (2 blocks). In addition, adding bus stops causes further delays on our bus routes and extends the student’s ride time. This means that bus routes would have to start earlier in the morning to arrive to school on time. Similarly, in the afternoon it would mean students arrive home later.

Musical instruments are permitted on the school bus as long as the student can carry the instrument or object on and off the bus by him/herself. They must be placed in the lap or stored between the student’s legs and the barrier in the front of the student. Instruments or large objects cannot block the aisle. Large instruments such as drum kits, cellos, and basses are too large to be transported on school buses safely. In an accident, these items can easily become a projectile object and can injure a student. If you are unsure, please check with your child’s school before bringing a large musical instrument or object to the bus stop.

If a driver finds an item on the bus, he/she will hold it until the following day. The student may ask the driver if his/her item was found on the bus. If it remains unclaimed, the driver will bring the item to the Transportation Office. If you contact the Transportation Office, please provide us with a full description of the item. Often drivers are not able to inspect buses while they are on the road and will check for lost items at their next assignment. Because electronic devices such as cell phones, tables, ipods, and games are very popular, the recovery rate is very low. We recommend that students store all personal items in a secure place such as their backpack while traveling to and from school.

Yes. If a student lives 1.5 miles or more away from school, they are entitled to free bus transportation. Unless a family notifies us that they do not want transportation, their children are placed on a bus route. Some families do not want to use transportation and choose to transport their children to and from school themselves. If we remove students from bus routes that are NOT going to use district transportation, we can reduce bus route times by eliminating the bus stopping at that assigned bus stop. At present, the bus stops at all assigned stops on the route and waits 3 minutes for the students to board the bus. If there are no students at that stop, the bus still waits for 3 minutes before moving onto the next stop.  

If you DO NOT want your child or DO NOT need your child to use district transportation, please fill out the D15 Transportation Opt-Out form so we can remove your child(ren) from the route.

D15 Transportation Opt-Out form

You may only need transportation one way, either to or from school. Please fill out the form and indicate which route you do NOT need transportation. 

If your child(ren) is assigned to a route and you wish to continue using district transportation, you do NOT need to fill out this form. The form is ONLY for families that do NOT need transportation.