Transportation

• Arrive at your morning bus stop at least 5 minutes ahead of your scheduled pick-up time. Student ridership and traffic conditions can be unpredictable, so the timing of a bus route is estimated.
• Stand at least 10 feet away from the school bus as it approaches your bus stop.
• Do not approach the bus until it has come to a complete stop, the stop sign, crossing arm and red lights have been activated and the doors have opened.
• Always stop, look and listen before approaching the school bus. Check to make sure opposing traffic has stopped before entering the roadway to board the bus.
• During the bus ride, remain safely seated and facing forward. Remember, the school bus is an extension of the classroom, and appropriate manners and behavior are expected. Your bus driver has an important duty to keep students safe. By following the rules of the bus, you can help make it a safe and smooth trip!
• For data and facts on school bus safety, please visit the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) website.

• School Bus Driver Shortage
  • Like most school districts around the country, we continue to struggle with a shortage of school bus drivers. We are actively hiring new school bus drivers and aides. If you or anyone you know is interested in becoming a school bus driver, please visit our website at https://wallingford.schoolspring.com/. Thank you for your patience and understanding as we continue to work through solutions to this problem.
• Passenger Count
  • Please remember that during the first few weeks of school is when most buses are crowded. Once High School parking passes are assigned and after school sports begin, the number of students riding the bus will decrease. 
• 5 Minute Rule
  • We do our best to predict school bus stop times. Students should be at their assigned bus stop at least 5 minutes before their scheduled pick-up time. If students are not at their assigned bus stop when the bus arrives, the school bus cannot wait for you.
• Drop-Off for Kindergarten
  • Parents/guardians are required to receive their kindergarten age students when dropped off at the bus stop. If a designated parent or guardian is not at the bus stop when the bus arrives, the transportation office will call the student's home to inquire. If a parent or guardian cannot be reached, the child will be returned to school.
• Telephone Calls
  • Peak operating hours for the Transportation Department are between 6:00 am – 9:00 am and from 1:30 pm to 4:30 pm. During these times our phone lines tend to be busiest. If you have a non-urgent question or concern, please send us an email at schoolbus@wssd.org. This will give us more time to adequately address your questions and concerns. 

Wallingford-Swarthmore School District believes in all students.  We understand that all students can succeed and that it is our responsibility to provide appropriate supports to all students to be their best selves. In this role, we are seeking individuals who share the belief that all students can succeed and that all students deserve to be treated with respect and dignity. 

Bus Drivers are often the first and last school-based adult students encounter each day.  It is important that these individuals understand and honor the safety which is critical to the role as well as possess a personality which makes students and families feel welcome and safe on the bus.

• Fully paid training is provided
• $33 per hour starting rate once CDL is obtained
• $20 per hour starting rate for aides/monitors

Basic Requirements:

• Valid PA Driver’s License
• Clean driving record
• Safety conscious
• Positive Attitude
• Reliable and Punctual
• Ability to meet physical/sensory demands of the job

Click Here to Apply!

Each year, drivers illegally pass school buses nearly two million times. Each illegal pass-by could result in a tragic injury or fatality of a student. The inconvenience of an extra few seconds spent waiting for a stopped school bus is insignificant compared to the loss of a child's life.

Did you Know:

• When you meet or overtake a stopped school bus with red signal lights flashing and stop arm extended, you MUST STOP.
• When you approach an intersection where a school bus is stopped with red signal lights flashing and stop arm extended, you MUST STOP.
• You MUST STOP at least ten (10) feet away from the school bus.
• You MUST WAIT until the red lights have stopped flashing and the stop arm has been withdrawn before moving.
• DO NOT MOVE until all the children have reached a place of safety.

There are severe penalties associated with running a school bus stop. For more information on Pennsylvania's School Bus Stopping Law, including an animated graphic demonstrating when you must stop, visit www.penndot.gov/safety

PA School Bus Stopping Law

Every parent/guardian in the district is connected through School Messenger/Powerschool. This technology allows us to communicate to our families through email, text, and phone. In the event of a school closure or other change, we will notify you directly through these three channels as early as possible.

Click here to view the WSSD Inclement Weather Information

After-School Activities

On snow days, after-school activities will be canceled. If weather conditions worsen during a regular school day, after-school activities may also be cancelled. In any case, parents will be notified.

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Two Hour Delays

In the event of a Two hour Delay, Bus Pickup times will be two hours later than your regularly scheduled time.

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Closing and Delay Criteria

Our top priority is student and staff safety. This decision is made through several relevant factors, including:

• Information on road conditions
• Amount of snow and ice accumulation
• Precipitation/temperature changes throughout the day
• Weather predictions (including those from a weather alert service)
• Weather timing
• Building conditions
• Parking lot conditions

In an effort to service the district safely during snow emergencies, our bus routes will utilize the normal stop locations throughout the district with some exceptions.  Please note the following stops and their alternate pickup points.  These stop locations will be utilized whenever there are delayed openings or when conditions warrant the alternate location as determined by the Transportation Office.  Whenever we utilize the alternate stop locations in the morning, we will also use those locations for the return route in the afternoon.

 

Regular stops located at:	Will utilize the following locations:
Pineridge, Hemlock, & Beechwood Roads	Chesley Office Complex (off Baltimore Pike)
Crum Creek Road stops between Beatty & Farnum Roads and 400-600 blocks of Beatty Road	Parkridge Drive & Woodridge Lane
810-869 Parkridge Drive & Ridge Lane	Either end of Parkridge Drive & Woodridge Lane
Possum Hollow Road between Woodward & Rose Valley Roads	Rose Valley Road & Possum Hollow Road
Longpoint Lane @ Longpoint Lane and Manchester Road between Rose Valley and Knowlton Roads	Manchester Road & Rose Valley Train Station
Avondale Road stops between Chester Road and East Rose Valley Road	Chester Road & Avondale Road
Woodward Road stops	Manchester Avenue @ Woodward Road or Providence Road @                Possum Hollow Road

The following times and language will be used to describe kindergarten schedules. We have adjusted the language to be in line with area news agency terminology when announcing inclement weather delays and closures.

Schedule	AM Session	PM Session
Regular	8:45am – 10:00am	11:15am- 12:30pm
Two Hour Delay (Modified Schedule)	10:45am-12:30pm	1:45pm-3:30pm

 

Please contact the transportation office for address verification.

The following is taken from the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE)- Revised Feb 2015

https://www.pa.gov/agencies/education/programs-and-services/schools/grants-and-funding/school-finances/reporting/pupil-transportation/pupil-transportation-faqs.html

 Q. Are school districts required to transport students?

A. With the exception of charter school students, Pennsylvania law does not require a school district to provide transportation to its students.

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Q. When does a school district have to provide transportation to a charter school?

A. The law requires school districts to provide transportation to resident students attending a charter school "on such dates and periods that the charter school is in regular session" if:

• The charter school is located within the school district, or
• The charter school is located not more than ten miles by the nearest public highway beyond the school district boundary, or
• The charter school is a regional charter school in which the school district participates.

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Q. When a school district provides transportation, who is responsible?

A. The board of directors of a school district is responsible for all aspects of pupil transportation programs. The school board may ask their solicitor (an attorney) to interpret educational laws and regulations for them.

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Q. How long may a child be required to ride on a bus?

A. This is a local decision (based on geography, population distribution, etc.). There are no time limits set by law or regulations.

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Q. How far may a child be asked to walk to a school bus stop?

A. The law allows a school district to ask a child, regardless of age, to walk up to a mile and a half to a bus stop. The mile and a half is measured by public roads and does not include any private lane or walkway of the child's residence.

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Q. I think the road my child must walk along is hazardous. What can I do?

A. The law provides for the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation to review potentially hazardous walking routes. The request for this review must be made by the school district to the local PennDOT engineering district office. PennDOT regulations do not address hazards other than road or traffic conditions. The local district may assess conditions such as bad neighborhoods, secluded wooded areas, snow removal, etc., when developing transportation routes.

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Q. May a school district suspend busing services for a child?

A. Yes. Transportation is a privilege, not a right.

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Q. When does a school district have to provide transportation to a nonpublic school?

A. When a school district provides transportation for its public pupils, it must provide transportation services to nonpublic pupils of the same grade level that it is providing for its own pupils. The nonpublic school must be nonprofit and located within ten miles of the district’s boundary, measured by the nearest public road. If the school building in which the pupil is enrolled is not located within the ten-mile distance, the nonpublic pupil is not eligible for transportation, nor are his parents eligible for payment towards transportation costs.

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Q. Is the local school district that transports my child to a nonpublic school required to transport her on days when the nonpublic school is in session and the public school is closed?

A. Yes, unless the closure is due to weather conditions.

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Q. May a school district ask a child going to a nonpublic elementary school to ride on a vehicle with public high school students?

A. Yes

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Q. Must transportation be provided for exceptional children?

A. Transportation must be provided as required by a child’s individualized education program (IEP). An intermediate unit may provide this transportation for the school district.

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Q. What can I do about transportation problems such as (1) the bus was late, (2) the bus never came, (3) the bus stop location seems dangerous, (4) the bus driver is speeding, and (5) another child hit my child on the bus?

A. You must work with your school district to address such problems.

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Q. Does the state provide funds for pupil transportation?

A. Yes. On a statewide average, the pupil transportation subsidy covers approximately half of a school district's transportation costs.