The transportation departments of three school divisions have partnered with Prairie Bus Lines to roll out the annual safety event.
The program, which targets students who will be riding a school bus for the first time - especially Kindergarten and Grade 1 students, is being organized by Chinook’s Edge, Red Deer Public and Red Deer Catholic school divisions along with Prairie Bus Lines.
The program is meant to get the students comfortable with “protocols, procedures and expectations” while using the bus.
The program is 45 minutes and will consist of four activity stations to learn about bus safety ahead of the start of the school year.
Patty Thompson, the assistant director of transportations for Chinook’s Edge says the program will “start them off right” as the students are likely to be using school buses for many years.
““The event takes place right before school resumes in the fall, so it’s a great way to transition from summer into a safe year ahead,” said Thompson.
The program has had roughly 200 students participate year year since its inception in 2009.
“That’s a lot of young people who have a better understanding of safety, and a lot of parents who have a reminder about bus safety, just in time for school start-up,” Thompson said.
The transportation coordinators hope to get as many students involved with this program as possible.
They emphasize the program isn’t just those who will be taking the school bus everyday, but for those will could take it at any point in the school year.
“Your child could still ride the school bus for field trips and it is important that they understand the safety rules,” said Kelli Pickett, safety and training coordinator with Red Deer Catholic Transportation Department.
The short program begins with the students watching a video of Winnie the Pooh as he rides the school bus for the first time.
The program will then cover “safety priorities at the bus stop, conduct a safety evacuation and discover the ‘danger zone’ around the bus where incidents are most likely to occur.”
The students will even hop on the bus with their parents for about 10 minutes to learn and entering and exiting the school bus correctly.
First Rider will be offered in Red Deer at École Secondaire Notre Dame High School on Aug 15 and in Olds at Olds College on Aug. 16.
The program runs from 1-3 p.m. and again from 6:30-8 p.m. both days.
The program is free and open to all families served by the three school divisions.