Transportation

In New York State, 2.3 million students are transported to school each day by school bus.  There are 50,000 school bus drivers and attendants/monitors transporting students in New York.  Herricks UFSD transports around 1,400 students to and from school each day.  Students are transported to five district buildings and more than 30 nonpublic schools. The Transportation Team currently employs 24 staff members, including regular school bus drivers, substitute school bus drivers and office staff. In addition, some transportation is provided in partnership with a bus contractor, Dell Transportation.

Meet the Team:

• Transportation is automatically arranged for eligible students attending Herricks Public Schools.
• Bus schedules can be found in the My Ride K-12 app.
• Please use the My Ride K-12 website to create an account if you need: https://myridek12.tylerapp.com/login

My Ride K-12 app information

Eligibility for transportation is based on mileage. The distance is measured from the legal residence of a child to their school of attendance. Students are eligible for transportation if they meet the following mileage requirements:

• Grades K-5: greater than 3/4 of a mile
• Grades 6-12: greater than 1 1/2 miles

Transportation for students who are new to the district will be established once the student is registered. It takes 3-5 school days for transportation assignments to be finalized. Once busing is assigned, parents will be notified via email with instructions on how to use the My Ride-12 app.

• Please be at the bus stop five minutes before the scheduled pick up and drop off times.
• Students should stand back from the road and move to board the bus once the bus has stopped completely.
• If students must cross the street to get on or off the bus, they must follow the driver's safe crossing instructions. 
• Parents or guardians at the bus stop must also cross the street following the bus driver's signal and the safe crossing procedures. 
• Bus stops are established at pickup points to pick up multiple students, usually at intersecting streets. Curb to curb bus service will not be provided unless approved by the BOE upon the recommendation of the CSE.
• Bus stop changes cannot be made by the school bus driver, please do not ask them for changes. Contact the transportation department for any change requests.
• Students in Grades K-1 must have an adult with them at the bus stop. Parents and guardians should tell us the names of the adults who will be at the stop and who can take their child off the bus in the afternoon. This person must be over 16 with valid identification. Students in Grades 2-5 can get off the bus by themselves with parent permission. Use the PM bus stop form to tell us who will be there or if your child can ride.

PM Bus Stop form

If your child requires transportation to a non-public school, transportation will be provided in accordance with NYS Education Law.  A Nonpublic Transportation Request must be submitted to the District Transportation Office by April 1st for the upcoming school year.  Transportation will be provided to the nonpublic school of choice, up to the statutory 15-mile limit within the mileage eligibility requirements.  Students in grades K-5 must live more than .75 of a mile and students in grades 6-12 must live more than 1.5 miles from their school of attendance.  If the school is undecided at the time of application, families should submit requests for each possible school choice.  School choice must be given to the transportation department via email (transportation@herricks.org) by April 1st each year or within five (5) days of the school's admission decision (verified with letter).

All students must be registered with the District to receive services.  Unregistered applicants can register by contacting the District's Registrar at (516) 305-8987 or complete the registration form for non-public school students found on this webpage.  Families who have not previously registered for non-public school services (transportation, books) will need to complete the registration process for non-public students.

Transportation will not be provided for non-public school students on the following dates during the 2024-2025 school year: 09/02/2024, 10/14/2024, 11/11/2024, 11/28/2024, 11/29/2024, 12/25/2024, 01/01/2025, 01/20/2025, 02/17/2025, 05/26/2025, 06/19/2025. Parents should make alternate arrangements to get their children to school if they must attend on any of these dates.

Families moving into the District after the April 1st deadline must submit requests within 30 days of establishing residency.

Parent letter for Nonpublic transportation 2024-2025 School year

Parents and guardians play a vital role in the safe operation of their child’s school bus in many ways. Parents should be aware of and reinforce the following school bus safety information with their children:

• Explain the importance of safe behavior on the bus – students should not stand while the bus is in motion, eat or drink on the bus and generally should use “inside” voices on the school bus. 
• Students may not fight, smoke/vape, or throw objects around or out of the school bus.  Students should observe the same behavior on the bus as they would in the classroom in a manner consistent with the Student Code of Character, Conduct and Support.
• Students should follow the directives of the school bus driver.
• Students may only board their assigned bus and get on and off at their assigned bus stop. If a student misses their stop, they should inform the driver so the driver can return to their stop.
• Students should not board the school bus with large items. Large school projects, packages or large instruments should be transported to school by parents.
• Objects should be secured safely in a backpack so students do not drop any items while loading or unloading from the school bus.
• The school bus driver is authorized to assign seats. 

Riding the school bus is a privilege. There are consequences for unsafe and inappropriate behavior on the bus. Everyone is entitled to a safe and peaceful ride on the school bus.