Resuming School Transport Services

When schools resume under Alert Level 2, school transport services will also return to normal schedules. The ongoing safety of bus drivers and students and the ability to contact trace is a priority as we enter Alert Level 2, and will be managed in the following ways:

Actions for schools:

• To allow for accurate contact tracing, schools must provide their transport provider with up-to-date bus lists, and must keep records to enable contact tracing to take place.
• Schools are responsible for keeping their families and communities informed with the latest information about their bus services.

Actions for Transport Providers:

• Drivers will be maintaining hand-sanitising protocols as per Company directive.
• Vehicles and surfaces will be sanitised after each journey (when the bus is MT), by the driver/transport company.
• Seats in close proximity to the driver will be left empty.
• On some routes passengers transfer to specific points between buses (shuttle services). Drivers will continue to manage these, as per normal routine.
• Transport operators will maintain up-to-date information on special assistance (SESTA) students they are transporting each day.

Every bus will be issued with a kit containing hand sanitizer, a spray bottle of surface cleaner, disposable cleaning cloths & gloves.

We are required to adhere to the following procedures:

• All drivers will be required to use hand sanitiser prior to starting their school run.
• The first seat immediately behind the driver is to remain empty, to ensure the driver’s safety.
• For those drivers who keep their buses at home with them, they will be required to ensure all surfaces (seat rails, window ledges, door handles and any grab rail areas etc.) are wiped over after both the morning and afternoon school runs.
• For those buses involved in combination secondary & primary school runs (morning & afternoon), the drivers will be required to ensure the bus is sanitised to avoid any cross-contamination between student groups as the MOE have directed us to undertake this procedure between service runs.

NB: This will take the form of an aerosol spray used throughout the interior of the bus.

Attached is a Ministry of Education Q & A sheet.

Cathy Molloy, Branch Manager, Ritchies Oamaru