Updated Transportation Policy

FISCAL MANAGEMENT & NON-INSTRUCTIONAL OPERATIONS             3000

TRANSPORTATION Annual Review             3600

STUDENT TRANSPORTATION SERVICES             3601

1. Statement of Purpose & Scope of Policy

1. The purpose of school transportation is to get pupils who live an unreasonable walking distance from home to school and back in an efficient, safe, and economical manner. Other purposes consistent with this definition include the provision of transportation for academic field trips in direct support of the curriculum and transportation for the support of the co-curricular program (e.g., music, drama, athletics).

2. It is the intention of the School Committee to comply with the letter and spirit of the Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 71, Section 68 and other laws pertinent to the transportation of pupils, and these shall govern any questions not covered by specific declaration of policy herein.

MGL Ch. 71, section 68 states that “if the distance between a child’s residence and the school s/he is entitled to attend exceeds two (2) miles and the nearest school bus stop is more than one mile from such residence …, the school committee (city) is responsible for providing transportation to students in grades K-6.  Further, the school district is required to provide transportation for students with disabilities who have transportation included as part of their Individualized Education Plan (IEP) and 504 Plans.  

2. Mileage Limits for Entitlement to District-Provided Transportation 

1. The Salem School Committee has determined that student bus transportation shall be provided at no cost for students in grades K-6 in accordance with MGL CH. 71, section 68.  In addition to what is required by MGL, the Salem Public Schools provides transportation 

to students as per the following:

• Pre-K: Not eligible
• Grades K-2: Students who live 1 mile or more from school 
• Grades 3-5: Students who live 1.5 miles or more from school 
• Grade 6: Students who live 2 miles or more from school (students in grade 6 are required to be transported 2 miles or above per MGL)
• Grade 7-12: Students who live 2 miles or more from school

**These students are considered mandatory riders 

2. The School Committee, at its discretion and to the extent permitted by Massachusetts’ law, shall authorize transportation to students who are not entitled to District-provided transportation to and from school as stated above. Such students shall be classified as

non-mandatory riders.

Student bus transportation shall only be provided to non-mandatory riders if there is excess

capacity on buses being used to service mandatory riders. Additional seats shall be assigned

on a priority basis to non-mandatory students using the following criteria:

• Economic status
• Walkable route access
• Younger sibling ridership

Providing seats are available, the SPS Transportation Director will assess the above criteria for non-mandatory ridership requests using the following tiered assignment process:

• Tier One: applicants meet all three of the non-mandatory rider request criteria.
• Tier Two: applicants meet two of the three non-mandatory rider request criteria. 
• Tier Three: applicants meet one of the three non-mandatory rider request criteria.

In the event that more students apply for non-mandatory ridership than are seats available and above tiered criteria are met equally by the remaining students, the Transportation Director will give priority to students who live at the greatest distance.

Consideration of the above will only be provided to: 

• Grades 3-6: Students who live between 1 and 1.5 miles from school
• Grade 7-12: Students who live over 1.5 but less than 2 miles from school

NOTE: Students in grades k-6 who live under 1 mile from school and students in grades 7-12 who live under 1.5 miles from school can seek a special exemption from the Superintendent if the student does not have access to a designated walkable route to school. In approved cases, the student will be placed into tier three for ridership consideration.  See Section 3 below.

3. No mileage restrictions shall apply to the transportation of a student whose individualized education program (IEP) or Section 504 plan includes entitlement to school transportation. In addition, multilingual learners who arrived in the United States within the last 12 months shall be eligible for bus transportation with no mileage restrictions for the remainder of the school year that they arrive to SPS. Students who are homeless or in foster care will be transported at no cost and in conformance with the requirements of the McKinney Vento Homeless Education Assistance Act.

4. Schools that identify transportation as a contributing factor to a student’s chronic absenteeism will be referred to the Superintendent (or designee) to proactively identify options for reducing transportation as a barrier to attendance.  

5. A bus pass shall be required for each student who is transported by the Salem Public School District and will be issued to each eligible student. The bus pass is a valuable document and must be retained in order for students to ride the bus.

6. Neither rerouting an established bus route when said bus is at capacity ridership, nor the addition of a bus to create a new route, shall be required to accommodate a request for a non-mandatory rider.  When either rerouting or adding a bus is the only way to accommodate a request for a non-mandatory rider, that request will be denied. The last non-mandatory student rider who was provided transportation on a given route would be the first student to be denied transportation if that route should exceed capacity. 

7. A non-mandatory student rider may be denied transportation due to a violation of the district’s ‘s code of conduct or a violation of the SPS transportation code of conduct.

8. Eligibility for Transportation and Controlled Choice. Under the Salem School Committee’s student assignment policy, parents have the opportunity to select a school other than their neighborhood school. Busing will be provided for those children who enroll in a school other than their neighborhood school only if they meet the distance eligibility requirements detailed above and are consistent with the objectives of policy 5103 “Controlled Choice Student Assignment Policy.”  For all others, transportation is the responsibility of the parent.  Additionally, school choice students are not entitled to transportation services.

9. Late Bus Transportation. “Late bus” transportation is for those students who stay past the normal dismissal times for school-related purposes at the middle school and high school. On occasion, when funds allow, “late bus” service will be provided to students at the elementary school level in conjunction with academic support programs.

10. Rider Eligibility. Any persons who are not employees and/or Salem students are not entitled to District transportation and are prohibited from Salem School District busses.

3. Superintendent Exception and Annual Review

In special circumstances, and in a limited number of cases, the Superintendent shall have the authority to make exceptions to this policy when a student’s or family’s circumstances may require additional supports. These circumstances include but are not limited to economic hardship, sibling transportation status, or lack of access to a walkable route to school.  

The School Committee shall review this policy annually.

Legal Reference: Policy 5103, “Student Assignment”

M.G.L. c. 71 §§ 7A, 68

29 U.S.C. §794 (Sec. 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973)

34 C.F.R. Part 104

Approved 1/19/21

Approved 5/2/2022

NOTE: Students in grades k-5 who live under 1 mile from school and students in grades 6-12 who live under 1.5 miles from school can seek a special exemption from the Superintendent if the walking area to school is designated an unsafe zone. In approved cases, the student will be placed into tier three for ridership consideration. 

We urge you to ask any questions, get clarification, and share your thoughts about these proposed changes with School Committee members. Contact information for School Committee members can be found here. And the current policy can be found here.