Barrington Public Schools
Transportation Update
August 2019
August 26, 2019
Good afternoon,
I hope you are enjoying the last days of summer vacation as we prepare to return to school next week. I would like to take this opportunity to update you on our District transportation services for the 2019-2020 school year.
The District has made several significant changes to our transportation schedule this year while maintaining a focus on the health and well-being of our students. After eight years of studying school start times, we are ready to implement a new two-tier transportation schedule aligned to the changes in our schools’ schedules for the 2019-2020 school year. We have worked very hard to develop routes and establish bus stops that will allow us the opportunity to have all students safely and efficiently arrive at and depart from school on a daily basis.
Changes to the transportation system include:
- Maximizing ridership on school buses to ensure efficient and cost-effective operation;
- Consolidating some bus stops and prioritizing route efficiency to reduce the total time students spend on buses each day; and
- Creating a BPS Transportation Manual that outlines the process of developing bus schedules and stop locations, states safety and behavioral expectations, provides policies and procedures, and provides access to helpful forms, including a change of address form and a change of bus stop request form.
New School Hours for the 2019-20 School Year:
· Hampden Meadows School: 7:45 AM - 2:20 PM
· K-3 Elementary Schools (Nayatt, Primrose Hill, Sowams): 7:55 AM - 2:30 PM
· High School: 8:30 AM - 3:05 PM
· Middle School: 8:40 AM - 3:15 PM
Today, transportation schedules and bus stop locations have been added to your
Student Demographics’ page in our Student Information System (Aspen). In addition to the Aspen page, schedules are listed by school on the Barrington Public School Transportation Website and will be published in the Barrington Times and on their online addition.
Traffic Safety
It is very important for drivers to pay attention to their surroundings, especially at the start of the school year. Traffic increases in town and around our schools before and after school, as school buses pick-up and drop-off students, students ride bikes, student drivers commute to and from school, and families pick-up and drop-off their children at school.
Diving Your Child to School
- For the safety of our students, follow the specific drop-off and pick-up procedures communicated by your school principal.
- Do not park in zones designated “no parking”.
- Do not drop-off or pick-up children across the street from the school.
- Always consider carpooling, as a means to reduce the number of vehicles at the schools
Sharing the Road with Pedestrians
- Always stop for the school crossing guards and yield to pedestrians crossing the crosswalk.
- Do not block crosswalks with your motor vehicle when stopped, as this can force pedestrians to go around you placing them in the path of moving traffic.
- Take extra care to look out for children in school zones and in all residential areas.
- Never pass a vehicle stopped for pedestrians
- No matter who has the right of way, always use extreme caution to avoid striking pedestrians.
Sharing the Road with School Buses
- It is illegal to pass a school bus that is stopped to load or unload children. We have instructed our drivers and our Transportation Company to report all moving motor vehicle violations to our Transportation Coordinator to be forwarded to the Barrington Police Department.
- If a bus has yellow or red lights flashing and the stop arm is extended, traffic must stop.
- If a bus is stopped to load or unload children, never pass from behind or from either direction, even if you're on an undivided road
- If you are driving behind a bus, allow a greater following distance than if you were driving behind a car. It will give you more time to stop once the yellow lights start flashing.
- Stop far enough behind a bus to allow students the space they need to safely enter and exit the bus.
- Be alert; children often are unpredictable, and they tend to ignore hazards and take risks and may rush to or from a school bus
Sharing the Road with Bicyclists
We have many students who ride their bicycles to school daily. Children riding bikes create potential safety concerns for drivers as bicyclists can be hard to see.
- Be extra vigilant in school zones and residential neighborhoods.
- Watch for bikes coming from driveways or behind parked cars.
- Check side mirrors before opening your door.
- When passing a bicyclist leave 3-feet between your car and the cyclist.
- Watch for bicyclists turning in front of you without looking or signaling.
- Please note, the most common cause of bicycle collision is a driver turning in front of a bicyclist.
Transportation Task Force
A nine (9) member Transportation Task Force, including three (3) members of administration and six (6) members of the public, have been appointed by the Superintendent to serve exclusively in an advisory capacity to assist, advise and make recommendations that align to the School District’s short-term and long term transportation goals.
The duties of the Transportation Task Force include, but are not limited to
1. Advising the Superintendent on the district’s transportation needs;
2. Advising the Superintendent on the allocation of transportation funding; and
3. Comment on policies and protocols involving school district transportation.
You can access the work on the Task Force on the Superintendent Webpage.
District administration will work to maximize the efficiency of the bus service by continuing to keep our students safe while fulfilling our promise of reducing overall ride time. All of this work will have a positive impact on our students and community.
Remember that you can expect delays the first several weeks of school while the drivers acclimate to their new schedules. Scheduled pick-up and drop-off times are only estimated times and may vary as students are added or deleted from bus routes during the course of the school year.
Please be patient through our transition period. We are committed to working with our community to make this transition year as smooth as possible. If you have any questions regarding student transportation, please contact the Transportation Coordinator or the Director of Administration of Finance who will provide you with a response.
Please contact:
Melissa Resendes
Transportation Coordinator
Barrington Public Schools
401-245-5000
Resendesm@barringtonschools.org
Doug Fiore
Director of Administration and Finance
Barrington Public Schools
401-245-5000
Fiored@barringtonschools.org
I wish you a very successful school year.
Mike Messore
Michael B. Messore III
Superintendent
Barrington Public Schools
283 County Road
Barrington, R.I. 02806
(401) 245-5000 ex1
(401) 245-5003 fax
www.barringtonschools.org
messorem@barringtonschools.org