All Lincoln County School District #2 students who use district transportation will be required to scan their identification when they board and exit every bus as they ride to and from school this year.  New passes will be available through each school’s office within the first few days of school.

Safety is improved when district officials and parents can quickly and easily locate students, and scanning aids in tracking the number of students on each bus.

Parents are invited to download the free parent app on the district website at transportation.lcsd2.org. “This app requires authorized parent or guardian credentials that are vetted through the district student information system, Infinite Campus,” said LCSD#2 Transportation Director, Ryan Lyman. “The app allows parents and guardians to see where and when their students got on or off a bus. It also allows them to know when the bus is going to arrive at their stop and whether it is running on time.”  Adults will have the option in the app to set their own notification items and frequency.

Lyman added that all elementary students will be given a new bus pass within the first few days of school by their respective schools. Secondary students will need to use their student ID from any past year or present a screenshot of their student ID number barcode from their Infinite Campus student account. All students can get replacement cards from their respective school’s office as needed.

“We are asking for everyone’s help to make this transition smooth by having their bus pass or phone ready when they get on or off the bus,” said Lyman. “We have been testing this system for 3 years now and it works very well and can be smooth and fast.”

“We are communicating directly with families on route 16,” said Lyman. “WYDOT told me that the stop light is on a seven-minute cycle, so if the buses meet it just right, we won’t have more than about a 10-minute delay. If traffic is busier, we may have to sit through two cycles at the light.” This may cause a delay of up to 20 minutes. It will all be random and based on traffic flow and the timing of buses as they arrive at the stop light.

The transportation Department consists of approximately 100 adults working to transport nearly 1500 students to and from school each day. Though staff members have planned for their responsibilities, things don’t always go as planned. They appreciate the public’s patience as they begin the new school year.

Additional points of interest are as follows:

■ Bus route, transfer, and after school activity bus information is available on the district transportation website. There have been no changes to routes and transfers since last year.

■ Individuals can contact the transportation office at 307-885-7146. Please leave a message as the staff experiences very high call volumes during bussing hours. They will return all messages as quickly as possible. “We’re hoping the bus passes and the parent app will resolve many questions and concerns.”

■ Motorists must anticipate the need to stop as soon as they see the amber bus lights that warn traffic of a bus preparing to stop for students to board or exit the bus. All traffic in both directions must stop when the red lights are on, regardless of the number of lanes on the road.  Since LCSD#2 boundaries have no roads divided by a meridian, all lanes of traffic must stop.

■ Students waiting in vehicles for the morning bus are encouraged to exit their vehicle at least 5 minutes before the scheduled arrival of the bus and stand at least 15 feet from the edge of the road. Buses cannot stop traffic or wait at stops where no students are standing.  If your bus has not arrived by its scheduled arrival time, please wait at least five minutes after the scheduled arrival time before calling to see where the bus is, or use the app to determine where the bus is.

■ If a student misses the bus, please do not follow the bus and approach it from the rear at the next stop. “Drivers cannot see students approaching from the rear and we want them to be safe,” said Lyman. “Instead, please meet the bus at a future stop that students can approach from the front with the other students who are boarding at that stop.”

■ Ongoing road construction in the narrows between Thayne and Grover will have a significant impact on Bus Route 16 (Duck) as well as all the middle school and high school transfer buses transporting students from Thayne and Etna Elementary Schools. Lyman has spoken with WYDOT’s local engineer, who assures the district that the project will be completed the week after Labor Day.