COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- As the school year approaches, public school districts are preparing to bus students back to campuses across Franklin County. With some changes and plenty of announcements, here is everything families need to know before boarding the yellow school bus.
Bexley City Schools and Grandview Heights Schools do not offer school bus services, so they are not included in this list.
Bus routes will be available by 5 p.m. Thursday for Canal Winchester students. Students were asked to complete their back-to-school forms and update their transportation information by the end of the day Monday to plan the transportation schedule. These routes will be available via PowerSchool.
Columbus City Schools said families who are eligible for transportation will receive busing information online this year, rather than through the mail.
Students' bus routing information can be accessed through the online Parent Portal.
According to the district, students who are enrolled by Aug. 12 should be able to access their transportation updates around Aug. 15.
Bus routes will be posted in Infinite Campus Aug. 8 and 9, the district said.
Students' bus routes can be found on Transfinder. The district said to only enter students' street number and street name, not their grade, school, or zip code. According to the district website, adding more information may cause the server to display inaccurate information.
The district also said its new start and end times will help with bus efficiency, including driver shortages, as the new schedule requires fewer buses. These new times have preschool from 8:30-11:15 a.m. to12:15-3 p.m., elementary from 8:05 a.m. to 2:45 p.m., middle school from 9:05 a.m. to 3:05 p.m. and high school from 8:35 a.m. to 3:20 p.m.
Bus information for students who live a mile or more away from their school can be found online with the Versatrans e-Link app. This app is also where students can request bus route changes, although the district said it will not consider any changes until after Sept. 7.
The district also warned that families should expect delays toward the beginning of the school year.
"Bus route pick-up and drop-off times will likely change due to late enrollments and verification of riders," the district said. "Plan on buses running late!"
The district said bus route passwords on Versatrans are reset at the beginning of each year, so parents should log in with their child's six-digit ID number for both the username and password on their first log in for the 2023-2024 school year.
Hilliard bus routes go live Aug. 12. Families can log in online with their student's student ID and birth date to access their routes then.
New Albany-Plain families can find transportation information in students' PowerSchool accounts starting Friday. According to the district, late enrollments may cause bus routes to change, so families are encouraged to check PowerSchool if they see an announcement about transportation updates.
The district also asked for patience in the first few weeks, asking families to prepare for it to take two to four weeks for bus routes to adjust to a consistent schedule. Although the district does not plan on any major updates this year, if its requested levy passes this fall, some of the money is budgeted for future transportation adjustments.
Pickerington students can receive their information through this online link, where they will be prompted to log in. The district said both the username and password will be a student's ID number, which is generated through Infinite Campus.
Parents can also download the "Versatrans My Stop" app to monitor their children's bus routes via GPS. However, the district warns the GPS only provides an estimate, and should not be used to wait until the last minute to reach the bus stop.
Student bus information for Reynoldsburg students can be found here. Students should log in with their student ID number, which should be their last six digits, for both the username and password.
South-Western City Schools made several changes this year to adjust to growing transportation needs, according to Evan Debo, executive director of communications for the district.
Debo said SWCSD needed to make some changes to best serve their riders, which numbered some 14,900 students last year. He said last year, the district received numerous complaints about bus delays, with some students not arriving home until 5:30 or 6 p.m., despite the school day ending around 3:20-3:25 p.m.
This year, they asked families to fill out a form by last Thursday to let the district know if they planned on opting in or out of transportation services. He said by the end of July, they had heard from nearly 1,000 students who said they were opting out, allowing the district to better allocate resources.
Another change comes from the decision to stop offering transportation from some daycares, as Debo said allocating a large passenger bus for just a few students was not the best use of resources. These students will not know for sure until school starts, Debo said, but the district gave some daycare centers in advance of the possibility for "transparency." He said many of these daycares are privately owned and have their own transportation services, so he encouraged parents to reach out to them to work out alternative transport.
Finally, Debo said the district has collaborated with the city to update walking zones. He said some areas that previously may not have been accessible for students to walk to school have been developed to better accommodate walkers.
"Route supervisors have helped ensure there are safe and easier walk areas with city infrastructure," Debo said.
Families should receive their bus route information via email in early-to-mid August, according to the district. Any students who did not request transportation through PowerSchool earlier this summer can still do so via email or by calling 614-487-6477. However, this must be done and the student must be assigned transportation information before they can get on the bus.
Westerville offers transportation services to students in kindergarten through 10th grade who live more than 1.5 miles from their schools, with 11th and 12th graders allowed if there is space available. Students can find their transportation information through the parent portal of PowerSchool.
If a student does not have transport, their bus stop will say "Non-Transport Area." Otherwise, "Bus Information AM" and "Bus Information PM" will display students' transportation plans.
As of last Thursday, students and parents can now request transportation services digitally. All students who need transportation must fill out the form, according to the district.
"This new system is designed to streamline the process, making it quicker and more efficient for everyone," Whitehall City Schools said via Facebook. "Don't miss out on ensuring your child has a smooth ride to and from school!"
The digital form can be accessed here.
