TOWSON, Md. — Come Monday, students will notice a change when boarding the school bus. No longer will you be able to sit next to your best friend.
"What parents can expect at most is one is one student per seat with a two seats behind the bus driver vacant," said Dr. Jess Grim, Director of Baltimore County Public Schools' Office of Transportation. "Students can only sit in the same seat if they live in the safe household."
It's all part of the district's safety plan currently in place for in-person learning. On Monday, the district will welcome back students whose parents have signed them up for hybrid learning. Some of them will take the bus to school.
"We want parents to feel safe and comfortable putting their students on a school bus knowing that safety is our number one it’s safety is our number one priority," said Grim.
As part of the safety plan, each seat has a number above it.
"Drivers also have a seating chart of where a child will be seated," said Janet Teter, Senior Operations Supervisor. "This will help with contact tracing should we need it."
In addition to assigned seating, the bus will be cleaned following each run.
"We do have a specific cleaning protocol. The drivers all have cleaning kits on the buses, and they will wipe and clean all high touch areas," said Teter."
Drivers will spray and wipe down areas of high contact.
As for student school bus route information, parents will begin receiving information today.
"Schools are receiving information from the Office of Transportation regarding student bus stops and bus information," said Grim. "Schools will then communicate that information to parents sometime this week."
