What Wake County students riding the bus Monday need to know

WAKE COUNTY, N.C. (WTVD) -- Wake County students going back to school for in-person instruction will have new bus procedures to follow in addition to all the new procedures inside the classrooms.

Students at bus stops must be wearing masks and waiting at least six feet apart.

But before the students even get to the bus stop, parents will be required to give them a COVID-19 health screening--which is covered in the attestation form they must fill out.

"The parent agrees that they will screen their student for COVID-19 symptoms each morning for the school year, for the current school year," WCPSS Transportation Operations Director Stephen Sposato said. "They will agree to take their child's temperature each morning, and they'll keep them home if their temperature is 100.4 or higher."

When the bus arrives, students must board one at a time. They must fill the seats of the bus from the back to the front, without skipping any rows.

Bus capacity has been slashed. Only one child may sit in each seat, unless the children are siblings.

This means bus routes have changed. The school district posted the new bus routes online.

All the changes could cause some slow downs, especially in the beginning.

"There may be some slow down as we begin to pick up students and deliver them to school so we're asking for everyone to be patient," Sposato said.

When the bus arrives at school, the students will exit one side of the bus at a time. So all the students on one side will file out of the bus in order, starting with those seated at the front.

Students are expected to maintain social distance throughout the entire disembarking process.