From vaping, the cost of school supplies to cellphone policies, the WTOP team is studying up on hot-button topics in education across the D.C. region. Follow on air and online in our series “WTOP Goes Back to School” this August and September.
School bus drivers are getting ready for the new school year in Prince George’s County, where schedules have been streamlined, bus stop locations have been updated, and families are being supplied with information on apps dedicated to helping them get ready to get to school.
There were three community information sessions in August ahead of the first day of school, set on on Aug. 26, to help parents understand the latest transportation information.
At the Fairmont bus lot, not far from Fairmont High School in Landover, driver trainer Charles Woods and several of his colleagues talked to WTOP about the job of a bus driver.
He has ferried children of all ages, from kindergarten to their senior year of high school, for years and insisted he has no favorites. He said he loves the job of transporting kids, and even on the toughest day, he said he considers it a “character-building day for me.”
He said his favorite time of year is around the holidays, including Halloween and Christmas, when kids come to school in costumes or are just in a festive mood. Woods said he makes it a point to greet each student and to get them off to a good start to the day.
Sometimes, he said, they’ll surprise him with little “tokens showing you how much they truly appreciate us. That right there, a lot of times, is better than actual monetary gain.”
Any time you get at least 60 children on a bus, there can be issues surrounding behavior, and yes, Woods said, there has been an adjustment in the post-pandemic period. It’s something he meets with patience and empathy.
“Just trying to get them reacquainted or reacclimated to actually being out and being able to function out here in society is so paramount in these days and times,” he said.
Larrissa Frost, a driver trainer at the Greenbelt bus lot, said every driver takes a de-escalation class every year.
“And it helps us with each student because every day is a different challenge,” she said.
But like Woods, Frost was quick to say the work of getting children to school safely is truly rewarding.
Frost said she tells new drivers to get plenty of rest, bring a positive outlook, “and just always know that you are transporting the most precious cargo in the world right now.”
Safety begins when each driver arrives and inspects their bus, from the exterior to the interior, where controls are checked, from the lights to the mirrors to the first aid kits that are stored on board.
Woods said drivers should keep in mind how buses move through traffic. Their sheer size and weight mean they require more space — and more time — when maneuvering around the unexpected.
“Just please realize that these vehicles weigh 28,900 pounds, which is close to 15 tons. So, moving at your basic speed of 35 mph — that’s a little bit less than a football field to stop,” Woods said.
Woods knows no one likes getting stuck behind a school bus while commuting or running errands, but he said, “I understand that you have a lot going on, we all do. I ask people to just be a little bit patient, that’s all.”
The work of the foreman at each bus lot begins early, the district’s transportation supervisor Rhonda Tuck said. Many are at the bus lot at 5 a.m.
“We have routes that can leave the bus lot at 5:15 in the morning, because we transport from the southern end of (Prince George’s County),” she said. “We may transport those students all the way up to Baltimore.”
That would be in cases where students have a specific placement to have access to special services, said Tuck.
With the changes in the new year — updated routes and changing bell times at some schools — Tuck said, “We’re in a process. We’re not perfect, but what we are doing is making sure that our children get to and from school safely.”
And as the school year starts, she said, “We’re making sure that students get on the bus first, before we make adjustments, but adjustments will be reviewed.”
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