BusServiceOverview
TheBusServiceDepartmentisrunbyourcontractedbusserviceproviderYellowBusandismonitoredbya UWCSEAappointedTransportManageroneachcampus.Ourbusserviceproviderhasbeencontractedto ensurethatappropriatestandardsofbusmaintenanceandsafetyareconsistentlymet.
Besidesusingtheirownbuses,thebusserviceprovidercontractsprivatebusestorunoncontractforUWCSEA Theyhirebusesthatareingoodandsaferunningorderandaremaintainedtothehighstandardsexpectedby ourparentsandtheCollege.Eachbusjourneyissupervisedbyabusattendant.
TheBusServiceDepartmentisabletoprovidethefollowingservices:
● Roundtrip(hometoschooltohome)
● Morningtrip(hometoschool)
● A ernoontrip(schooltohome)
Underexceptionalcircumstances,roundorsingletripsmaybeavailabletostudentswhoarenotregisteredbus ridersbutarefullyenrolledUWCSEAstudentsregisteredwiththeMinistryofEducationSingapore.
Busesleavethebusbayatapproximately210pm(Infants(K1–Grade1)and315pm(Grade2–12) When ActivitiesandServicesarerunning,anActivitiesbusservicedepartsat3.15pmforInfantstudents,4.40pmfor Grades2–12students,andaMRTfeederbusservicedepartsat615pm(Grade5–12) Notethatthe6:15pm shuttlebuswilloperatewithoutanattendant.
Alltheseservicesaresubjecttospaceavailabilityandexistingserviceroutings.Newservicesmaybeintroduced basedondemand,butthismayrequiresometimeforplanningandimplementation
Note:The4.40pma er-schoolactivitybusesforbothcampuseswillstartoperatingfromthe4thweekof eachnewacademicyear.
GeneralGuidelines
Standardofvehicles
Studentsaretransportedinavarietyofbusesrangingfrom10-seaterminibusesto49-seatercoaches Therewill benoseatingforInfant(K1–G1)ridersinthefrontseat(nexttothedriver)ofthebus.
Eachofthesebusesisequippedwiththefollowing:
● Air-conditioning
● Fireextinguisher
● Firstaidkit
● Communicationsystem(i.e.,mobilephone)
● Aseatbeltforeveryseat
AllbuseswillundergoregularinspectionsatLTA-approvedcentres,incompliancewithLTA'sregulatory requirementstomaintainthehighestsafetystandards.InternalchecksbytheUWCSEABusServiceDepartment aremadethroughouttheyear,andeachbusmustpassaninspectioncarriedoutbythedepartment
Eachbusdriverisequippedwithacommunicationdeviceforemergencysituations Driversarenotallowedto usethisdevicewhilstdriving;noprivatecallswillbeentertainedduringtheirjourney.
Standbybuseswillbedeployedforallscheduledtrips,includingmorning,a ernoon,andactivitytrips,incase ofservicedisruptions.However,formorningtrips,ifastandbybusisnotavailableduetounforeseen circumstances,parentswillneedtoarrangealternativetransportationtoschoolandcanclaimreimbursement fromthebusoffice
Behaviourexpectationsofstudentpassengers
Ifastudent’sbehaviouronthebuspersistentlygivescauseforconcern,wereservetherighttoaskparentsto makealternativetransportarrangements
Routings
Pleasenotethatourcontractedbusserviceprovidermaynotbeabletoprovideaserviceforcertainpartsofthe islandduetoinsufficientdemandandtheunacceptablelengthoftimethatastudentmayhavetospendona schoolbus.Theavailabilityofthesedistanceroutingsisreviewedregularly;pleasecontactusformoredetails.
TheBusServiceDepartmentalsoreservestherighttorefusebusserviceforroutingswhichdonothavea minimumnumberofsixchildrenperminibusandroutingsthatarebeyondthetimetravellimitsetbythe schoolforthewelfareofthepassengers.ForstudentsintheInfantSchool,wemayalsodenyarouteif,inthe opinionoftheclassteacher,thechildisnotmatureenoughtotravel
Pleaseensurethatyouunderstandthisinformationbeforeregisteringyourchildattheschool.
Enrolment
Enrolmentintothebusserviceisonlynecessaryonceperyear;yourenrolmentwillbeautomaticallyrenewed everyterm.
RidersinGrade10andthosewhohavewithdrawnfromthebusserviceduringthetermmustre-registerifthey wishtoresumebusservice
Ifyouraddresschanges,pleasenotifyussothattheBusServiceDepartmentcanmakearrangementstoserve yournewaddress WerecommendthatparentscheckwithourBusServiceDepartmentaboutbusavailability beforeestablishingresidenceormoving.Becausebusseatsareassignedbasedondemand,spacemaynot alwaysbeavailablefromyournewplacelaterintheschoolyear Althoughwewilldoourbesttoaccommodate everystudent,"latecomers"canonlybeassignedaseatifspaceisstillavailableontherequestedbusroute.
Toenrol,pleasecompletetheonlineTransportRequestFormandremitpaymenttothecontractedbusservice providercompany Alternatively,aprintableformcanbedownloadedfromtheschoolwebsiteorahardcopy canbepickedupfromtheBusServiceOffice.Adepositmayberequired.
Pleaseallowtwoworkingweeksbetweenthedateofsubmissionandthestartdateofbusservice Late submissionoftherequestformmayresultinstudentsnotbeingabletostartusingthebusonthedesireddate. Onlystudentswhohavesuccessfullycompletedtheregistrationprocessandmadepaymentfortheschoolbus serviceareallowedtoboardthebus Pleasenotethatbusseatsarenon-transferable,andparents/guardians cannotassignortransfertheirchild'sseattoanotherstudentorsiblings.
Feestructure
Thefeesarepayableperterm
Payment
Paymentmaybemadedirectlytoourcontractedbusserviceproviderviainterbanktransferorcreditcards. Familiesorcompaniespayingbyoverseaswiretransfer,orinforeigncurrency,willhavetobearany miscellaneouschargesassociatedwiththisformofpayment.
Pleasecontactourcontractedbusserviceproviderwithanyquestionsyoumayhaveregardingpayment.
Termination
Shouldyouwishtoterminatetheuseoftheservice,writtennotificationmustbereceivedbytheBusService Officetwoweeksinadvanceofthelastdayofservice.
Whereachildiswithdrawnfromtheschooland/orbusservice,arefundofhalfofaterm'sfareisapplicableif thechild’swithdrawaldateisbeforethemid-termbreak,providedthattwoweeks’writtennoticeisgiven.No refundwillbemadeifachildwithdrawsfromtheservicea erthemid-termbreak.
Lostproperty
AnyitemsfoundinthebuswillbereturnedtotheBusServiceOffice.Ifitemsareclearlylabelled,thecampus Receptionteam,whichisresponsibleforlostandfounditems,willcontactyouandyourchildviaemail.All
otheritemswillremaininthecustodyoftheCollege’slostandfoundatthemainreception.Asalways,students shouldbeencouragedtolooka ertheirbelongings,aswecannotbeheldresponsibleforsuchlosses.
Communication
Wewillendeavourtokeepyouinformedofanybusserviceissues.Iftherearesignificantdelaysinbusserviceor incasesofemergency,parentswillbecontactedby,atleast,oneofthefollowingthreemethods,dependingon theissue:
SMSmessagingtoyour mobilephone
Personalcontactvia landline/mobilephone
Pleaseensurethatyourcontactdetailsareuptodate.SMSmessageswillbesenttoONEparent’smobile number(only)asrecordedontheBusServiceDepartment’sdatabase Youcancheckthecontactdetailsthat theCollegeholdsforyouandmakeanychangesnecessaryviatheonlinedatabase.
Videoandmusic
Wedonotallowthescreeningofvideosonanybuswhichmayhaveavideo/DVDmachine Music/videosareto beplayedonpersonaldevicesonly,andstudentshavetowearearphonestolisten.
Seating
Asageneralinfantridersaretypicallyseatedclosesttothebusattendantornearthefrontofthebus.However, thisseatingarrangementcanbeadjustedifanolderstudentrequiresclosersupervisionduetomedicalor behaviouralneeds.Olderridersaregenerallyseatedonafirst-come,first-servedbasis,takingintoaccountthe specificcircumstancesofeachbus Onsmallerbuses,seatsnexttothedriverarereservedforolderriders
ResponsibilitiesOfUsersOfTheBusService
Allinvolvedwiththebusservicehaveadutytoensurethatsafetyandefficiencyaremaintainedwhilstusing thisservice.Theseexpectedresponsibilitiesaredetailedasfollows:
Parents’responsibilities
PleaseinformtheBusServiceDepartmentifthereisanychangetoyourchild’stransportarrangements.
Communicationisthemainthingaparentcandotoensuretrouble-freeuseofthebusservice.Ifforanyreason atallyourchildwillnotusethebusservicethattheyhavebeenbookedon,morningora ernoon,please informtheBusServiceOfficeinpersonorbyphoneoremailonedayaheadofthedayofchange.Thiswill ensureotherpassengersandstaffarenotinconvenienced,andforsafetyreasonsweknowwhereallofour passengersare.
Parentsshould:
● Ensurethatstudentsareatthepick-uppointatthedesignatedtime Pleasenotethatabuswillwait onlyoneminutea erthedesignatedtimebeforemovingontothenextpick-uppoint.Unfortunately, wewillnotcallyoutocheckwhereyourchildis,andtheschoolwillnotberesponsibleforsubsequent traveltoschool
● EnsurethatInfantriderscarrytheirbusIDtagsatalltimesduringtravel.
● InformtheBusServiceDepartmentifforanyreasonyourchildwillnotbeusingthebusoriftheyhave anychangestotheirtravelarrangements.InthePrimarySchool,youshouldalsoensurethatyounotify theclassteacherviathestudent’scontactbook
● Ensurechildrenareawareofappropriatebehaviourandtheconsequencesofmisbehaviourwhileon thebus.
● Makeyourchildrenawarethattheymustwearseatbeltsatalltimes
● Boosterseat:InfantSchoolchildrenwhoarerequiredtohaveaboosterseat,pleasearrangeitandpass ittothebuscrew.Pleaserecovertheboosterseata erthecompletionofthejourney.Youare encouragedtobringyourownduetoitsspecifications,sizesandhygienepurposes Thebuseshave 3-pointsafetybelts,soitisnotnecessarytogetone.
● EnsureanadultispresenttocollectInfantSchoolchildrenfromthebusattheendoftheday.Parents areresponsiblefortheirchildrenuptothetimethatthebusattendanthelpsthechildrenontothebus andfromthetimethatthebusattendantreleasesthemattheirdrop-offpoint.ParentsareNOT permittedtorideontheschoolbus
Changestopick-upanddrop-offdestinationsorbustimingscanberequestedwithtwoweeks'writtennotice. Wewillendeavourtoaccommodatethesechangeswhereverpossible However,pleasenotethatapprovalis subjectto:
● Thedestinationiswithinourservicearea
● Availabilityofseatsonthebusfortransfers
● Thedestinationisastudent'shomeoreducationalinstitution
● Therequestedtimingisfeasiblewithinourrouteandschedulingconstraints
● Thechangedoesnotadverselyimpactotherstudents'travelarrangements
● Trafficconditionsandsafetyconsiderations,whichmayrequireadjustedpickupordrop-offtimesto avoidcongestedareas
Wewillkeepyouinformedabouttheoutcomeofyourrequest,whichwillbebasedonouroperational guidelinesandcapacity Ifyouwouldliketodiscussthedecision,ourTransportManagerisheretoreviewyour requestandprovideafinaldetermination.
Thankyouforunderstandingthatourdecisionsprioritisethesafetyandefficiencyofourtransportationservice forallstudents
Noteonplaydates/bustransfer:Forchildsafeguarding,dataprotection,andinsurancereasons, Infant/JuniorSchoolchildrenareassignedtospecificbusservicesandgenerallymustridetheir designatedbus.Exceptionsmaybemadeifthebusessharethesameroute,providedthatbothparents notifytheBusOfficeinadvancetoarrangeforthestudentstotraveltogether.
Noteonchildsafeguarding:ChildsafeguardingisatoppriorityoftheCollege;ifparentsnoticeanysymptoms ofchildabuseinanyform,theyarerequestedtoreportittotherespectivePrincipalandHeadofCampus immediately.
Students’responsibilities
Therearespecificguidelinesforbehaviouronthebus WhilstusingtheBusService,studentswillbeexpectedto adheretothefollowing‘RiderBusRules’:
RESPECTTHEFEELINGSOFOTHERSANDTHEIRRIGHTTOHAVEASAFE,PLEASANTANDPEACEFUL JOURNEY.
● Wewillarriveatyourbusontime.
● Wewillwearproperlyadjustedseatbeltsatalltimes.
● Wewilltalkquietlyandpolitelytooneanother.
● Wewilltreateachotherwithrespect.
● WewillshowrespectandlistentotheBusServicestaff.
● Wewillkeepthebusclean
● Wewon’tkeepeveryonewaitingortrytosaveseats
● Wewon’tmoveaboutthebusoropenthewindows
● Wewon’tshout,makeloudnoisesorusebadlanguage
● Wewon’tteaseorfight.
● Wewon’tberudetothebusattendantordriver.
● Wewon’tthrowthings,spitorleavelitteronthebus
● Wewon’taskthedrivertoplayourmusic.
● Wewon’teatordrinkonthebus,exceptforwater.
● Wemayonlyleavethebusatourdesignatedstop.
● Wewillkeepourpersonalbelongingssecureandnotleavethemunattended
● Wewillnotbringprohibiteditemssuchassharpobjectsorflammablematerialsontothebus
● Wewillstayseatedwhilethebusisinmotion.
● Wewillnotdistractthedriverwithunnecessaryloudconversationsorbehaviour
Toensureasmoothandefficientbusservice,itiscrucialthatparentsmustnotifytheBusServiceOfficeofany changestotheirregularschedule Unfortunately,forgottennotificationscancausesignificantdelays,impacting otherstudentsandstaff.Toavoiddisruptions,we'veestablishedsimplerulesforallbususers,outlinedbelow andprintedinstudentcontactbooks.
Morningbususers
Pleaseensurethatyouarriveforthebusinplentyoftimeinthemorning,thebuswillwaitoneminuteandwill leavewithoutfurtherwarning.TheBusServiceDepartmentwillnotcallyoutoremindyouorwakeyouup.
A ernoonbususers
● Donotkeepyourbuswaiting IfyouaredoinganActivityorService,godirectlyfromyour activity/servicetoyourbus.Thebusdoesnothavetowaitforyou,andifyoumissthebusyoumayhave toarrangeyourowntransport.
● Ifyouarenotgoingtousethebus,pleaseensurethatyourparentsinformtheBusServiceOfficebythe firstbreak.Thiscanbedonebyemail,phoneorinperson.Grade11and12studentscaninformtheBus ServiceOfficedirectly
● DonotgohomebyanyothermeanswithoutensuringthattheBusServiceOfficeknowsthatyouwill notbeusingyourbus.Thisincludestravellinghomewithyourparents.
● IfyouarenotdoingyourscheduledActivityorServicea erschoolforanyreason,youwillstillhavea seatreservedonyourbusandwillberequiredtogohomeonthisbus.Youwillnotbeabletogohome onanearlierbusunlessexcusedbyyourActivityorServiceteacher.
● PleasemakesurethatyoutelltheBusServiceOfficewithwrittenpermissionofbuschangefromyour teacher/instructor/parentifyourschedulechangesforanyreason.Thisisyourresponsibility;donot dependonmembersofstafftodothisforyou.
● IfyoudonottelltheBusServiceOfficeaboutanychangestoyournormalbuspatternandthiscauses aninconveniencetootherbususers,youwillbegivenawrittenwarningviayourteacher.A erthree suchwarnings,youmaybesuspendedfromtheschoolbusserviceandyourparentswillneedto makealternativearrangementstobringyoutoandfromschoolforasetperiod.
Cross-transferofbuses
OnlyMiddleandHighSchoolbusridersareallowedtocross-transferontoadifferentbus,subjecttothe availabilityofseats,providedthatbothparentsnotifytheBusOfficeinadvancetoarrangeforthestudentsto traveltogether
3-StrikePolicy
WehaveabuswarningsysteminplacetoencouragestudentstobehaveresponsiblywhileusingtheBus Service.Thesysteminvolvesissuingwarningletterstostudentsattherequestofacademicstaff.Ifastudent receivesthreewarnings,theywillberemovedfromthebusserviceforaspecifiedperiod,asdeterminedby academicstaff.Incasesofseriousmisconduct,studentsmayfaceimmediatesuspensionfromthebusservice. Additionally,studentswhodamagebusesduetomisbehaviourmayberequiredtocoverthecostofrepairs. Thissystemisappliedacrossthecollege,withsomemodificationstosuittheageandneedsofdifferentstudent groups.
Reporting/ReferralSystem
WhenariderbreachesBusRulesdespiteverbalwarnings,theBusServiceDepartmentwillsubmitawritten reporttotheschool(classteacher/tutor/mentorandHeadofGrade)andnotifyparents.Theschoolwilldiscuss thematterwiththestudentandtakenecessaryactions.Theteacher/tutor/mentorwillthenconfirmwiththe TransportManagerthattheissuehasbeenaddressed,andifnecessary,requesttheBusServiceDepartmentto issueaformalwarningunderthe3-StrikePolicy.
Althoughbehaviourreportstakeonefulldaytocirculatetotheteachers/tutors/mentors,itisimportantthatthe correctadultspeakstothestudentregardingtheirbehaviour.
Teachers’responsibilities
● Teacherswillensurethatthefollowingmeasuresaretakenforallstudentsintheirclasseswhoareusing theBusService:
● Teacherswillensurethatstudentsareletoutofclassesintimetocatchtheirbuseshome.
● Schoolstafflookinga erInfantriderswillaccompanythemtothebusattendantattheendofeach schoolday.
● ActionwillbetakenonreceiptofabehaviouralcomplaintfromtheBusServiceDepartment.
● Intheeventofanydelaytoastudentundertheirsupervision,theyshouldinformtheBusServiceOffice
(seeReporting/ReferralSystem)
Principals’responsibilities
ThePrincipalofeachschoolwillberesponsiblefor:
● ThroughtheVicePrincipals,HeadsofGrade,thePrincipalswillfollowupwithindividualstudents whosebehaviourpersistentlygivescauseforconcern.
● Ensuringthatstudentsareremindedregularlyaboutbussafetyandbehaviouronbuses
BusAttendants
ABusAttendantwilltraveloneverybuswherechildrenmovefromhometoschoolorschooltohome.ABus Attendant’sroleisoneofsupervisionandgeneralwelfareofstudentsonly.
BusAttendants’Responsibilities
● Tolooka erthewell-beingandsafetyofallstudentsonthebus.
● ToreportanymisbehaviourofstudentstotheBusServiceOffice.
● ToreportanysymptomsofchildabuseinanyformtotheBusOfficeimmediately.
BusAttendantsfoundbehavingdishonestlyorirresponsiblymayhavetheirservicesterminated Security
● Attendantsmustnotopenthedoortospeakwithunauthorisedpeopleorallowunauthorisedpeopleto boardthebus
● Attendantsmustimmediatelyreporttothedriveranysuspiciousvehiclefollowingthebus.
Accidentandemergencyprocedures
● AttendantsareinstructedtoremaincalmandcheckthattheBusDriverandStudentsaresafeand unhurt
● AttendantsmustcontacttheBusServiceOfficeandcallthepoliceand/orambulanceifnecessary.
● Attendantsmustnotleavethestudentsunattended.
Administration
● Attendantsmustnotleavethebusuntiltheirdutyiscompleted
● Attendantsmustreporttothebusdriverand/orBusServiceOfficeiftheyfeelunwell.
● AttendantsmustcheckthatthecorrectBusNumberSignisproperlydisplayedandclearlyvisibleonthe front,sideandrearwindows.
● Attendantsmustcheckthatworkingseatbeltsareavailableforeachseat. Onthebus
● Attendantsmustaccuratelymarkstudentattendanceforeveryroute
● Attendantsmustensurethatstudentsarewearingseatbeltsatalltimes.
● Attendantsmustneverbedrawnintoanyargumentwithorrespondphysicallytostudents
● Attendantsmustnotdisciplineanystudentandmustavoidphysicalcontactwithstudents.
● Attendantsmustnotgivefood,sweets,drinks,gi sorpresentsetc tostudents Ontheroad
● Attendantsmustensurethatstudentsgetonandoffthebussafely
● AttendantsmustcontacttheBusServiceOfficeifanadultisnotpresenttomeetanInfantSchool studentatthedrop-offpointandkeepthestudentonthebus
● InfantSchoolstudentsmustbecollectedbyaresponsibleadultatthebusstop;busattendantsarenot permittedtoleavethemunattended.
BusDrivers
BusDrivers’Responsibilities
● Totransportallstudentstotheirdestinationssafely
● ToreportanysymptomsofchildabuseinanyformtotheBusServiceOfficeimmediately. BusDriversfoundbehavingdishonestlyorirresponsiblymayhavetheirservicesterminated Security
● Driversmustnotopenthedoortospeakwithunauthorisedpeopleorallowunauthorisedpeopleto boardthebus.
● DriversmustimmediatelyreporttotheBusServiceOfficeanysuspiciousvehiclefollowingthebus.
Accidentandemergencyprocedures
● DriversareinstructedtoremaincalmandcheckthattheBusAttendantandstudentsaresafeand unhurt.
● DriversmustcontacttheBusServiceOfficeandcallthepoliceand/orambulanceifnecessary
● Driversmustnotleavethebus/studentsunattended.
Vehiclemaintenance
● Driversmustensurethebusiscleanandingoodmechanicalconditionbeforeeverybustrip.
● Driversmusthaveacommunicationdevice,afirstaidkit,andafireextinguisheronboardatalltimes
Ontheroad
● Driversmustneverdrivethebusiftheyaretiredorunwell.
● Driversmustwearproperfootwear;nosandals/barefeet.
● DriversmustnotifytheBusServiceOfficeiftheBusAttendantisnotonboardthebus
● Driversmustalwaysdrivedefensively,keeptothespeedlimits,andobeyalltrafficrules.
● Driversmustensurethebusnumberisdisplayedandvisible
● Driversmustwaitoneminuteonlya ertheassignedpick-uptimebeforemovingon.
● DriversmustcontacttheBusServiceOfficeifastudentisnotathis/herpick-uppoint
Onthebus
● DriversmustcontacttheBusServiceOfficeifanadultisnotpresenttomeetanInfantSchoolstudentat thedrop-offpointandkeepthestudentonthebus.
● DriversmustnotleaveanInfantSchoolstudentatastopalone
● DriversmustcheckwiththeBusAttendantthatallstudentsareseatedwiththeirseatbeltsfastened beforethebusmovesoff
● Driversmustnotdisciplineanystudentswhoaremisbehaving.
● Driversmustavoidphysicalcontactwithstudents
● Driversmustnotgivefood,sweets,drinks,gi sorpresents,etc,tostudents.
● Driversmustnotstopthebusatanyunofficialstopstomeetstudents’,teachers’orparents’special requests
OnCollegepremisesandinthebusbay
● Driversmustobservethespeedlimitontheschoolcampus.
● Driversmustnotsmokeontheschoolcampusorwhilestudentsareonboardthebus
Weexpectalldriverstodriveaccordingtotherulesoftheroadanddrivecarefullyandsensibly.Ifa schoolbusisobserveddrivingoroperatingdangerouslyandrecklessly,thebusserviceroutenumber and/orthelicenseplatenumbershouldbereportedtotheTransportManagerimmediately.
