The District has been evaluating several of our transportation services for the past few years and has decided to implement policy to align with Iowa Department of Education guidance. One of the policies involves parents requesting multiple pickup or drop-off locations.
Example: A student is picked up a home in the AM but dropped off at different location on Monday–Wednesday–Friday, and third location on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Parents will be limited to one AM pickup and one PM drop off location for each student. Parents may request a different/alternate drop off location for the Wednesday early-outs. The parent will determine the primary AM and primary PM location. The primary location may be the student’s residence or it may be a daycare. The Wednesday early out PM “alternate” drop-off may be a different address.
Over the years, the District has tried to accommodate parents requesting multiple pickup and drop-off locations for students. Providing multiple pickup and drop-off locations is a safety concern for the students. This specialized service has become difficult to manage to insure students are being dropped at correct locations. The District’s bus driver pool is continually changing with new hires and sub drivers. It is a struggle for new drivers to get to know the students and be aware of the individualized pickup and drop-off locations for certain students. It is nearly impossible for a sub driver to know the special circumstances for all routes. Additionally, as student enrollment grows, the availability of seats on the bus routes is limited, making it difficult to shift students between routes to accommodate specialized pickups and drop-offs.