We understand that transportation is an important part of your child’s school day and want to take a moment to explain how bus routes and stops are determined to ensure everyone's safety and efficiency.

As guided by the Commissioner of Education, our school district is responsible for creating bus routes and selecting how students will get to school. These decisions are carefully made to balance safety, travel time, and efficiency. Once bus routes are designated by PCSD, they remain unless it is shown that a change is needed for safety reasons.

Our transportation team takes great care when choosing bus stops, looking at factors such as student safety, convenience, and the efficiency of the route. In Pittsford, bus stops are placed with the goal of having safe, centralized group stops that minimize how long students are on the bus while making the overall route smoother for everyone.

When planning, we use the District's walk to bus stop guidelines:

• 528 ft. for grades K-5
• 792 ft. for grades 6-8
• 1,096 ft. for grades 9-12

We do not offer door-to-door service.

Requesting Bus Stop Changes

We know that each family has unique circumstances, and every year we receive requests to change bus stops. However, please note that during the first 2-3 weeks of the school year, we won’t be able to consider any changes unless there’s an urgent safety concern. This is because drivers are learning their routes and we want to ensure they’re able to do their jobs safely.

After that initial period, parents and guardians can submit written requests for changes. If you’d like to do so, please send an email to Carla_Grove@pittsford.monroe.edu including your name, address, and reason for the request after reviewing the information below:

1. Parent Responsibility for Safety: It is the parent or guardian’s responsibility to ensure their child gets to and from the bus stop safely, even if the stop is a short walk from home.
   • If you have a newborn or young children at home, or can’t see the stop from your house, this doesn’t change your responsibility.
   • Common road conditions, such as heavy traffic, no sidewalks, unlit streets, or winter snowbanks, do not automatically mean the bus stop is unsafe.
2. Bus Stop Locations Can Change: Bus stops may be different each year, and a stop in a specific location this year doesn’t guarantee it will be the same next year.
3. Cul-de-Sacs: We try to avoid sending buses into cul-de-sacs whenever possible. Students may need to walk to a safe location at the entrance. If a stop is in a cul-de-sac, we’ll designate a central location for all students to meet.
4. Disrupting Designated Stops: Requests that disrupt existing bus stops within walking distance can only be considered if all impacted parents/guardians agree.

We recognize that there are unique situations that may not fit neatly into these categories. Our transportation department strives to provide excellent service, though we know there may be times when not everyone agrees with our decisions. Rest assured, our bus dispatchers are experienced and work hard to ensure safe, efficient bus routes.

We truly appreciate your understanding, patience, and support as we work to give your child the safest experience on our buses.