Student Transportation Regulations

Note: This electronic version of the Student Transportation Regulations is for informational purposes only. The printed version remains the official version.

Copies of official, printed text versions of the Student Transportation Regulations can be obtained for a nominal fee in person, by fax or by e-mail request from:

Queen’s Printer - Legislative Subscriptions Unit
Supply Services Building, 2nd Floor - Building 277
9029 Quartz Road
P.O. Box 2703 (G-2D)
Whitehorse, Yukon Y1A 2C6
Phone: (867) 667-5783; or, long distance - toll-free at: 1-800-661-0408, Ext. 5783
Fax: (867) 393-6210
queens.printer@gov.yk.ca

Contents

Interpretation
Transportation allowances
Bus route requirements
Operation
Closure
Passenger restrictions
Transportation of non-students
Students in designated contract vehicle only
Student drop-off
Employees not to drive contracted vehicles
Student conduct
Student misbehaviour
Condition of vehicles
Responsibility of driver
Accident reports
Insurance requirements
Curricular and extra-curricular use
Conveyance contracts
Use of private vehicles for student transportation
Transportation of students in vehicles

EDUCATION ACT
Student Transportation Regulations

1. Interpretation

In these regulations,

"assistant deputy minister" means the member of the public service responsible for the administration of the Public Schools Branch of the Department of Education; («sous-ministre adjoint»)

"bus route" means the route defined by the assistant deputy minister that a contracted vehicle is to follow to convey students to and from school; («parcours d'autobus»)

"contracted vehicle" means a vehicle operating under a conveyance contract; («véhicule visé par un contrat»)

"contractor" means the person with whom the assistant deputy minister has signed a conveyance contract; («entrepreneur»)"

"conveyance contract" means a service contract with the assistant deputy minister for the conveyance of students; («contrat de transport»)

"driver" means the operator of a contracted vehicle; («conducteur»)

"eligible student" means

1. a student who resides more than 3.2 kilometres by the nearest passable road from the school
    
   1. in which the student has been enrolled by the Deputy Minister or by a school board under paragraph (11)(1)(a) of the Act, or
   2. which the student has been directed to attend by the Deputy Minister or by a school board under paragraph 11(1)(b) of the Act;
2. a student who resides more than 3.2 kilometres by the nearest passable road from the school where the student is attending a second language or other specialized program approved by a superintendent or director;
3. a student who in the opinion of the assistant deputy minister is in need of transportation to and from school by reason of mental or physical disability;
4. a student who in the opinion of the assistant deputy minister is in need of transportation to and from school by reason of his or her extreme youth or the existence of hazardous conditions if there is a bus route established under subsection 3(1) on which the student may be conveyed; («élève admissible»)

"monitor" means a principal, a teacher, or another adult designated by a principal, who provides supervision to students on a contracted vehicle or on school premises; («surveillant»)

"School Busing Committee" means a committee of representatives from two or more school committees, school councils, or school boards whose schools have shared busing services, established to provide advice to the Department of Education on matters affecting the delivery of the shared busing services; («comité du transport scolaire»)

"Supervisor of Facilities and Transportation" means the member of the public service responsible for the Department of Education's busing program under the direction of the assistant deputy minister; («responsable des équipements et du transport»)

"turnaround" means an area large enough for a school bus to change direction without engaging the reverse gear. («virage complet»)

2. Transportation allowances

1. The amount of the transportation allowance to be provided under subsection 47(2) of the Education Act in lieu of transportation shall equal the Government of Yukon car mileage rate payable to public servants to a maximum amount prescribed by the Minister.
2. Where a student resides more than 3.2 kilometres by the nearest passable road from the school he or she attends and resides more than 3.2 kilometres from the nearest loading point or bus route, the Department of Education shall pay a transportation allowance for transporting the student to the loading point.
3. The Department of Education shall pay only one transportation allowance per household for transporting the eligible students of that household to their designated schools or contracted vehicle loading points, whichever is closer, by the nearest possible road.
4. Having provided a transportation allowance to an eligible student, the assistant deputy minister has no further responsibility for transporting the student between the points for which the transportation allowance was provided.
5. Where a public transit system is in operation, the Minister may, subject to such terms and conditions as are agreed to between the transit authority and the Minister, require certain categories of eligible students to utilize the public transit system to travel between the school and the student's home.

3. Bus route requirements

1. For the conveyance of eligible students to school under a conveyance contract, the assistant deputy minister may, after consulting with the school council or school board of the schools by the route, the appropriate principals and the contractor, establish a bus route which has at least 20 passengers.
2. Subject to the Minister's approval, the assistant deputy minister may establish bus routes for the conveyance of eligible students where there are fewer than 20 passengers on the route if the assistant deputy minister receives from each school council, or board representing the students to be transported, an application for a bus route which is supported by a petition from all parents requesting the service. The written application must contain:
    
   1. a sketch map identifying and showing the locations of the eligible students;
   2. an estimate of the number of students to be conveyed, including the names of students, their designated schools, and their grade levels;
   3. an indication of the distance between the various loading points and the schools or the nearest existing school bus route;
   4. the identification of any student who may require transportation to and from school by reason of their mental or physical disability, their extreme youth, or the existence of hazardous conditions, and
   5. any other information requested by the Minister.
3. The assistant deputy minister shall seek a written response concerning an application made under subsection (2) from the director or superintendent responsible for the schools to which the students would be conveyed.
4. Within 30 days of receiving a completed application under subsection (2), the assistant deputy minister shall notify each school council and school board involved of his or her decision. Where the request is refused, the assistant deputy minister shall give reasons for the refusal.

4. Operation

1. The Supervisor of Facilities and Transportation shall ensure that, wherever possible, student travel time on established bus routes be limited to a maximum of 90 minutes for each one way of travel, unless otherwise approved by the Minister.
2. The Supervisor of Facilities and Transportation shall, in consultation with the appropriate school councils, or school boards, or the appropriate School Busing Committee, designate loading points along bus routes, and no student shall be taken on or discharged from a contracted vehicle except at such points.
3. For the purpose of transporting students most efficiently and economically, school councils or school boards shall be consulted by and shall cooperate with the Minister in establishing the opening and closing hours of their schools and in the designation of the school bus routes.

5. Closure

1. The Supervisor of Facilities and Transportation may temporarily cancel service along a bus route if road conditions are unsafe. Unsafe road conditions include unsafe ice, snow, mud or water conditions on the road, road construction, and an inadequate turnaround. Where time permits, the Supervisor shall consult with the appropriate school councils and school boards before cancelling the service.
2. Bus drivers shall report unsafe road conditions to the Supervisor of Facilities and Transportation as soon as practicable and pending direction from the Supervisor about the cancellation of the route, may stop driving if the road conditions are so unsafe that a prudent driver would stop.
3. When service on a bus route has been temporarily cancelled, the Supervisor of Facilities and Transportation shall give notice as follows:
    
   1. in the case of a temporary cancellation arising on a day to day basis, notice shall be broadcast on radio stations between 6:30h and 9:00h and 15:00h and 17:00h, or
   2. in the case of a temporary closure known in advance or expected to last for a predetermined period of time, the Supervisor of Facilities and Transportation shall give notice in writing to the affected school councils, school boards, and school principals. The principal of a school affected by the closure shall give notice in writing to the affected parents.

6. Closure (continued)

1. The assistant deputy minister, in consultation with the affected School Busing Committee, school council or school board, and with the approval of the Minister may permanently cancel service for all or part of a bus route.
2. Where service on a bus route has been permanently cancelled, the assistant deputy minister shall provide notice, in writing, to the affected school councils or school boards and the school principals. The notice of cancellation shall state the dates and reasons for the cancellation.
3. The permanent cancellation of service for all or part of a bus route shall be without prejudice to any rights which a student using the service may have under subsection 47(2) of the Act.

7. Passenger restrictions

The load limit and the number of passengers on a contracted vehicle shall not exceed the rated load limit and seating capacity of the vehicle.

8. Transportation of non-students

1. Except as otherwise provided in the Act or regulations only students may ride in a contracted vehicle on a designated route.
2. The Supervisor of Facilities and Transportation may authorize an adult to ride in a contracted vehicle on a designated route for the following purposes:
    
   1. to check routes, load factors, student numbers, student conduct and driver behaviour;
   2. to accompany as an aide, students eligible for transportation by reason of their mental or physical disability or their extreme youth, and
   3. to supervise students on the contracted vehicle when requested to do so by a school principal.
3. The Supervisor of Facilities and Transportation may authorize a student at any campus of Yukon College to ride in a contracted vehicle where:
    
   1. each school council or school board served by the vehicle consents to the college student riding in the contracted vehicle;
   2. regular students are not inconvenienced thereby;
   3. it is not possible or practical for the college student to use other transportation;
   4. the student agrees to comply with all rules of conduct of passengers in the vehicle, and
   5. no additional expenditures are incurred by the government under the conveyance.
4. The assistant deputy minister may authorize an employee of the Government of Yukon employed in a school to ride in a contracted vehicle where the employee is employed in a school outside Whitehorse, or the employee is employed in a school in Whitehorse but lives outside Whitehorse, and
    
   1. the employee lives more than 3.2 kilometres from the school in which the employee works;
   2. each school council or school board served by the contracted vehicle consents to the employee riding in the contracted vehicle;
   3. regular students are not inconvenienced thereby;
   4. it is not possible or practical for the employee to use other transportation;
   5. the employee agrees to comply with all rules of conduct for passengers in the contracted vehicle, and
   6. no additional expenditures are incurred by the government under the conveyance.

9. Students in designated contract vehicle only

Eligible students may ride only in their designated contracted vehicle, except when they have been granted approval by their principal to ride in another vehicle.

10. Student drop-off

When it has been pre-arranged that someone will meet a student at a designated drop-off site and no one is at the drop-off site to meet the student, the student shall not be left at the drop-off site. The bus driver shall return the student to the school and if the school is closed, the driver shall bring the student to the busing contractor who shall maintain a list of emergency telephone numbers for contacting the parents.

11. Employees not to drive contracted vehicles

Employees of the Department of Education shall not drive contracted vehicles without the written permission of the assistant deputy minister.

Student conduct

1. The duties of students under section 38 of the Act continue during transportation to or from school.
2. Students shall follow school bus rules while being transported to and from school.

13.Student misbehaviour

1. School bus rules are rules made by the assistant deputy minister governing behaviour by a student during his or her transportation to and from school which set out procedures to be followed and penalties to be imposed when the student does not obey the school bus rules.
2. The monitor riding the contracted vehicle, or in the absence of a monitor, the driver of the vehicle shall monitor student behaviour and enforce the school bus rules.
3. Where a student misbehaves on the way to school, the student will be delivered to the school and the monitor or driver shall immediately inform the school principal of the misconduct, and shall provide a written report of the incident to the principal within 24 hours or the next school day, whichever is later.
4. Where a student misbehaves on the way home from school, the student will be delivered to the student's drop-off point and the monitor or driver shall report the misconduct to the school principal immediately upon arrival at the school on the following day, and shall provide a written report of the incident to the principal within 24 hours or the next school day, whichever is later.
5. Where the misbehaviour of a student threatens the safety of any person in the vehicle, the monitor or driver may demand that the misbehaving student disembark, and the driver shall immediately notify the contractor who in turn shall immediately notify the principal or where the principal is not available, the superintendent or the director. The contracted vehicle shall not leave the place where the misbehaving student has been dropped off until suitable arrangements for the pick-up of the misbehaving student have been made, and the alternate transportation is on the site. The monitor or the driver shall provide a written report of the incident to the principal within 24 hours.
6. Where a student has been ordered to disembark, the principal, the director or the superintendent contacted by the contractor shall notify the parent and the appropriate school council or school board as soon as practicable of the student misbehaviour and of the order for the student to disembark. The principal, the director or the superintendent shall mail a written report of the incident to the parent and the appropriate school council or school board within 72 hours of the incident.
7. Where the principal believes that a student's misbehaviour in a contracted vehicle was a breach of the school bus rules, endangered the safety of any occupant of the contracted vehicle, or caused damage to the contracted vehicle, the principal may suspend the student from being conveyed in accordance with the school bus rules.
8. Where a student has been suspended under subsection (7), the principal shall:
    
   1. immediately report the matter to the student's parents and to the contractor responsible for the contracted vehicle, giving reasons for the suspension; and
   2. within 24 hours of the incident or on the next school day, give the student's parents in writing the reasons for the suspension and provide a copy to the contractor, to the School Board or the School Council, as the case may be, or where there is no Board or Council to the superintendent.
9. The suspended student or the suspended student's parents may appeal the suspension as a local appeal under section 156 of the Act.
10. The superintendent, school council or school board hearing an appeal under subsection (9) may:
     
    1. reinstate the student's conveyance privileges,
    2. confirm the suspension,
    3. vary the length of the suspension, or
    4. add or substitute another disciplinary measure provided for in the school bus rules.
11. The suspension of student conveyance privileges under subsection (7) shall be immediate and shall remain in force until the period of suspension has ended or has been varied or revoked on appeal.
12. A transportation allowance shall not be provided while a student's conveyance privileges have been suspended.

14. Condition of vehicles

1. The assistant deputy minister may make a student conveyance contract only if the contracted vehicles meet the requirements of the Canadian Standards Association (C.S.A.) Standard D-250-M 1982 and the contractor complies with the National Safety Code for Motor Carriers.
2. The Supervisor of Facilities and Transportation may, at any time, order an inspection of any contracted vehicle to determine compliance with the requirements of the Canadian Standards Association.

15. Responsibility of driver

No driver shall drive with students as passengers until satisfied that the contracted vehicle is in safe mechanical condition.

16. Accident reports

When a contracted vehicle is involved in an accident, the contractor shall immediately report the accident to the Supervisor of Facilities and Transportation.

17. Insurance requirements

The assistant deputy minister shall require the contractor to carry for each vehicle contracted, a motor vehicle policy providing insurance coverage in respect of loss or damage resulting from bodily injury or the death of one or more persons, including passengers, and loss or damage to property in the following amounts:

1. a minimum of $5,000,000 where the vehicle is carrying no more than 11 passengers, or
2. a minimum of $10,000,000 where the vehicle is carrying more than 11 passengers.

18. Curricular and extra-curricular use

1. A contracted vehicle may be used for purposes other than the regular transportation of students to and from school where:
    
   1. such use does not interfere with the regular transportation of students to and from school;
   2. the vehicle is the most practical and economic means of transporting the students, and
   3. the school principal arranging the use of the vehicle ensures the provision of adult supervision at a minimum rate of one monitor for every contracted vehicle use.
2. Notwithstanding subsection 14(1), a contracted vehicle that is transporting students for purposes other than for transportation to and from school does not have to meet the requirements of the C.S.A. Standard D-250-M1982.
3. A contractor utilizing a vehicle that does not meet the C.S.A. Standard D-250-M1982 pursuant to subsection (2) shall comply with the National Safety Code for Motor Carriers.

19. Conveyance contracts

Conveyance contracts shall be administered in accordance with the Government of the Yukon Contract Regulations.

20. Use of private vehicles for student transportation

1. The principal of a school may authorize the occasional transportation of students in the school in a privately owned vehicle not covered by a conveyance contract where
    
   1. the owner of the private vehicle carries, in respect of that vehicle, insurance covering third party liability, and
   2. the driver of the private vehicle holds a valid Yukon driver's licence for the class of vehicle being operated and is insured when driving the vehicle.
2. Proof of compliance with subsection (1) must be provided to the principal and a photocopy of the document must be kept on record at the school.

21. Transportation of students in leased vehicles

The principal of a school may authorize the transportation of students in a vehicle which is not being operated under a conveyance contract but which is leased by the Government of the Yukon where the vehicle

1. will be driven by an employee of the Government of the Yukon or by a volunteer authorized by the principal to drive the vehicle on government business, and
2. is not registered in the name of, or owned in whole or in part by the employee or the volunteer who will drive the vehicle.

Dea Hrebien
Student Transportation Officer
Department of Education
Government of Yukon
Box 2703
Whitehorse, Yukon
Canada Y1A 2C6

Phone: (867) 667-5172
Toll free (In Yukon):
1-800-661-0408, local 5172
Fax: (867) 393-6254

dea.hrebien@gov.yk.ca