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Utah School Districts Implement Safety Protocols For Bus Drivers, Students

Aug 12, 2020, 5:18 PM | Updated: 10:36 pm

MURRAY, Utah – It’s a new day for school bus drivers as they prepare to be in very tight quarters with hundreds of students a day. That’s why districts across the state have put into place a variety of protocols to make sure the driver and students are safe, no matter how small or large the district is.

“What’s going to be really different is protocols before and after they get done picking ups students,” said David Roberts, director of support services with the Murray City School District.

Murray City School District starts school on Monday. They have just 12 buses, but drivers are delivering about 600 students a day to and from school.

Roberts pulled out a box full of cleaning supplies to show what every driver will be issued. Drivers are being told they must spray down and wipe down the entire bus after each route before more kids get on the bus.

And when the bus is returned at night it will undergo a deep cleaning.

The other requirement will be the driver and students must all be wearing masks.

“The key to keeping our employees, as well as the students, safe is making sure they have a mask on. We’ll also be providing gloves for our drivers, as well as face shields,” said Roberts.

At the Canyon School District, they have 180 buses with 142 routes. Drivers have about three or more routes a day where they will be delivering about 10,000 students to schools.

Their protocols are much the same when it comes to cleaning and masks, and they also plan to have assigned seating for all students. Students will sit with family members when possible.

“A lot of our bus drivers were a little bit apprehensive at first, but after we told them and taught them what we are putting into place to help protect them they are excited,” said Jeremy Wardle, director of transportation with the Canyon School District. “They’ve been off work for five months now. Some of them are really needing to get back to work to help with their economy.”

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Utah School Districts Implement Safety Protocols For Bus Drivers, Students