Students receive a lesson in school bus safety ahead of back-to-school

The Ottawa Student Transportation Authority hosted a road and school bus safety event for kids and parents ahead of the first day of school.

The start of the new school is right around the corner, and for some, that can mean taking their very first ride on the school bus.

That’s why an event was held on Sunday by the Ottawa Student Transportation (OSTA) and the Ottawa Safety Council for Kindergarten students and those set to take the bus for the first time to receive a lesson in school bus safety.

Kristen D’Amours says seeing her four-year-old son Logan step onto a bus is “a little bit emotional.”

“Just seeing him grow up into the guy that he is, it’s just great,” she says.

Logan will be attending school next week, so participating in this felt like a good fit.

“He’s a little bit more needs to know what’s happening and I’m a little bit - I like to know what’s happening as well with the plans,” D’Amours explains. “So, something like this is really good; really helpful for kids that need the extra hand of what to expect.”

Stacey Kay, OSTA’s General Manager and Chief Administrative Officer, says kids learn how to wait for the bus, get on and off, and walk across the street using real-life examples and short films.

The Ottawa Safety Council also gives tutorials on how to safely walk across crosswalks.

Kay says about 75,000 students across the city take either yellow school bus transportation or OC Transpo to get to class each year.

“So, there would be thousands of Kindergarten students riding a bus for the first time each year,” she says. “An event like today really goes a long way to reassure both students and parents that they can safely get to school. And then it can be a whole lot of fun.”

Bus driver Kim MacLachlan says that it’s helpful for those behind the wheel because safety is paramount.

“I tell them there’s going to be snow, so you might have to step over the snowbank and kind of talk through all the little things that might happen,” MacLachlan said. “So, it’s in the back of their head when it does happen.”

Rebecca Morse says the information session helped her daughter Rowan, and with days ticking down to the first day of class, it made her daughter feel confident.

“It seems like they’re going to take good care of her when she goes off to school,” she explains.