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Home My WebLink AboutWalking the distance: Parents challenge rules that keep kids off school buses - Globe & Mail - 09/24/2018 - Globe & Mail - 09/24/20189/25/2018 Walking the distance: Parents challenge rules that keep kids off school buses - The Globe and Mail Walking the distance: Parents challenge rules that keep kids off school buses CAROLINE ALPHONSO ), 1:..'.1DUCA"T"1101W R11:..:F10R"T"11:..�1R IP U 1B 11 IS11 N 11::: D S 11:::. IP 111:: IM 1B 11:::11? 2 4, 2.0.11.8 Ul:11DA"T"11.:1D 1.6 HOURS AGO Slhab in IMullll llks Iheir daughter 1R2 da, I.O, the 1...4 Ian firom 11heir Ihoirne Girt Crescent 11 own -to George VA/pIkctnir Phoimainfniry '11P In"11P https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-walking-the-distance-parents-challenge-rules-that-keep-kids-off/ 1/7 9/25/2018 Walking the distance: Parents challenge rules that keep kids off school buses - The Globe and Mail °°'iii" I iii W i° �lr�,l��'f �,ol!l'> C 2 It 11 east -end Toronto neighbourhood where they live. So she quit her job. "It was a tough decision," said Ms. Mulla, who moved to Canada from India two years ago and was among a group of parents in the Crescent Town neighbourhood petitioning the local school board for a bus. "As we are newcomers, we're still struggling to settle down in this country .... But you cannot expect kids to walk on their own that far. There's two crossings. It's dangerous." ...r 0 IFS Y C 0 N ...r l IV U f::::. S IF3 IF.:::. IL... 0 VV A II:) V IF.:::. IR: 1i l SIF.:::. IM IF.:::. IN ...1.. The problem: The local school board, guided by provincial rules, provides bus service for children who live at least 1.6 kilometres from school, and the petition was for about 70 students who lived 1.2 km away. That 400 metres was the difference between a bus and what some parents believe is a treacherous walk to school. It raises a thorny issue of whether a seemingly arbitrary distance to qualify for a school bus in many parts of the country should be revisited to take into account parents' time or financial constraints, or road conditions that children have to navigate. The rules to be eligible for student transportation vary from 1.6 km for kindergarten to Grade 5 students at the Toronto District School Board (TDSB) to four kilometres for nrimary students in Manle Ridge. B.C. Alberta's School Act states that students https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-walking-the-distance-parents-challenge-rules-that-keep-kids-off/ 2/7 9/25/2018 Walking the distance: Parents challenge rules that keep kids off school buses - The Globe and Mail Iltii a IAulllla„ I.O„ w lllks to schooll Mth Ih it irrn th it Shabaina IlA ulllla (fair iIght) as weIIII as oth it 1paireints and thdir 61111dir irn Who hve iiirn ciresc irnN 11 owirn 6irn 11 oiroirnto„ Selpt, .11. 8, 20'.11.8. IAARr IIW INIF:'.K/ T11 11::.' x:11 1131F.: A NID MAIIII.../GII...011311:::.. AINID I AIIII... A spokeswoman for Ontario Education Minister Lisa Thompson said the eligibility distances have been in the province's Education Act since before 1990 and that the government is reviewing the student transportation policy. Some parents and observers are challenging the rules, arguing that they are outdated and unique situations need to be examined more closely. Parents who work shift jobs, for example, are not always able to pick up or drop off their children. They don't necessarily have cars or flexible work hours. School districts follow provincial policy around busing because funding comes from the province. Budgets are constrained, boards say, and driver shortages are not uncommon. There's an increasing hush for children to walk to school for a number https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-walking-the-distance-parents-challenge-rules-that-keep-kids-off/ 3/7 9/25/2018 Walking the distance: Parents challenge rules that keep kids off school buses - The Globe and Mail S "'f 0 IFR Y C 0 IV "'f II 1,4 U f::::::S 113 E.::!. 11 d:: D VV A II: F 0/ IE.::!. IFR "'lF II S IE.::!. IM IE.::!. IN F. " I think it's a lot more complicated than saying, `Well, kids should walk to school.' Under certain circumstances, that may hold. But for a number of really important reasons, that's not always that easy." A spokesman for the TDSB said guidelines are in place to ensure consistency across the city while balancing students' ability to walk to school. The children from Crescent Town had been attending a school just outside their building complex, but when it got too full. the TDSB transferred the Grade S cohort to George Webster. https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-walking-the-distance-parents-challenge-rules-that-keep-kids-off/ 4/7 9/25/2018 Walking the distance: Parents challenge rules that keep kids off school buses - The Globe and Mail °°'iii" I iii 2 It 11 Centreville, a small town in Newfoundland and Labrador, was among a group of parents fighting for their children to ride the bus this school year. The Newfoundland and Labrador English School District has a long-standing rule that students who live 1.6 km or farther from their catchment school are eligible for transportation. Mr. Cutler said his children live about a kilometre from school, but the strict enforcement of the rule does not work in rural communities. There are no sidewalks, and road shoulders can be covered in snow during the winter, forcing children to walk in the middle of the street, he said. He said he is also concerned about wildlife, especially coyotes, in the area. "'f 0 IR Y (110 N f II Irl G..1 f:::::.S 113 E.::!. 11 0 \N A 11:7 VIE.::!.Ifs 1f. II SIE.::!. ISI IE.::!. IN 1f. The school district said it has proposed a courtesy stop within the 1.6 -km zone, but that the parents want multiple stops "and further departures from policy." The district said that it needs to work within its current budget allocation from the province. Mr. Cutler said that it took longer for many children to walk to the courtesy stop than it did for them to walk to the school building. https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-walking-the-distance-parents-challenge-rules-that-keep-kids-off/ 5/7 9/25/2018 Walking the distance: Parents challenge rules that keep kids off school buses - The Globe and Mail In c 0114 IA IE.. 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