Transportation Scoop
April 2021
Director's Message
Transportation Team,
Spring is finally here!! And not a moment too soon as we try to slowly get back to some sense of normalcy. I hope everyone was able to find some enjoyment during Spring Break in March. This has truly been a challenging year and your resilience and flexibility has been remarkable.
As we move forward with the expansion of in-person hybrid learning on April 20th, I want to remind everyone that we will start to see more students on buses. With that increase in ridership, it will be critical not to become complacent in terms of our operations, continuing to follow and enforce COVID-19 safety protocols, and practice social distancing to the maximum extent possible. With more students on buses, we need to strive to make sure that they are wearing masks while on the bus. If you have students who refuse to comply, please be diplomatic but insistent on these protocols and if they continue to refuse, let your supervisor and the school know so they can take appropriate action. There are exceptions to this requirement for special needs students who cannot tolerate a mask for physical or psychological reasons in which case we provide additional PPE for staff in such situations.
We’ve also seen a recent increase in incidents involving rolling or backing buses. This has been a very unusual year with many of you performing tasks well outside of your normal responsibilities of operating buses. As we return to our normal duties, I want to encourage everyone to maintain situational awareness of their surroundings, especially when backing up. Today it might only be a bent mirror or dented bumper, but tomorrow it could be an injured person. I like to think we should always be in a constant state of mild discomfort when driving to avoid complacency. Always just a little unsure, never too comfortable, always double-checking things to make sure we didn’t forget something.
I also have a few exciting things to report. We have received our first two fully electric buses which should be going into operation on April 20th with the remaining three buses being delivered in the next few weeks. This is exciting and represents the wave of the future with LCPS Transportation on the cutting edge. While these are only five buses out of our fleet of over 800, this gives us a chance to see how they function and provide recommendations to the manufacturer to incorporate into future models. If you have a chance to drive one of these on your route, please let us know what you like and don’t like about these new buses.
Also, for our garage staff, some of you may have noticed a new office trailer that was installed at the north end of the Central Garage building. County of Loudoun staff will be relocating to this space, allowing us to finally create a long overdue designated break room where the garage staff can eat lunch instead of in the garage itself.
We hope to keep these fleet and space improvements continuing to provide an attractive and healthy work environment so if you have recommendations on what you’d like to see done, or what we can be doing to better support and serve you, please let me know.
Please continue to stay healthy and safe and I look forward to seeing everyone on the road and around the office and garage.
April Town Hall Meeting
Time and Attendance: Transferring Job Types
This is an important reminder that when performing any assignment while driving or attending on a bus, the correct job type MUST always be selected. For help, use the Transfer Tips Sheet.
Some examples are:
If Bus Cleaning, select/transfer to that job type. Bus Cleaning includes COVID cleaning and other inside bus cleaning as necessary, as well as bus washing. Due to the COVD cleaning, it should not take more than ½ hr. to clean the inside of a bus.
If Fueling, select/transfer to that job type.
If Drug Testing, sign out of the run and do not sign in until returning to the bus to continue with the run or another assignment. Contact Time & Attendance to have the Drug Testing time entered, along with drive time.
If assigned a Mid-Day (between 9:30am to 1:00pm), select/transfer from AM Run to Mid-Day. If on a run and the bus breaks down, transfer to Bus Breakdown/Service, if the bus isn’t out of commission, causing selecting/transferring impossible. In that case, contact TAA and the time will be posted correctly on the timesheet.
Time and Attendance: Standby Guidelines
When assigned the job type, Standby, the employee must be at the job site during the time on Standby. In addition, the employee MUST let Dispatch know that they are on Standby. Permission will not be granted to call from home and ask TAA to post your time to Standby. If requested to go on Standby and unable to go to the work location, leave will be posted. If late signing into Standby, contact TAA and the time will be corrected, but the employee is always expected to sign in regardless of the time signed in.
Additional Leave Process
The Loudoun County School Board approved up to an additional ten days of sick leave for full-time employees who are unable to work due to experiencing symptoms that may indicate COVID-19, including those who responded ‘yes’ to the symptom checker questions. To access this leave, employees must answer ‘yes’ to the COVID-19 symptom checker. To return to work, employees must submit a note from a healthcare provider or submit a negative COVID-19 test to the Leave and Disability Office.
LCPS Symptom-Checker Alternative Processes
Health Mitigation Strategy Anonymous Concern Registry
This information is being collected to identify areas where changes or improvements can be implemented to increase the safety of our staff and students.
Face Coverings
Face coverings, including cloth or procedure masks, are intended to mitigate the spread of the virus by reducing airborne droplets. They should cover the nose and mouth. All employees must follow LCPS guidance related to face coverings. In other words, the use of face coverings is mandatory. LCPS has provided a limited number of cloth face coverings for employees who are working on-site in LCPS facilities.
Face coverings are required in all LCPS facilities when in shared areas of the buildings, including but not limited to break rooms, kitchens, restrooms, hallways, stairwells, lobbies, and meeting rooms. They are also required while in personal workspaces, except when in a room, office, or cubicle with walls 7’ or higher, with the door closed. Face coverings may be removed while actively eating or drinking, but only if a minimum of 6’ of physical distancing can be maintained. Otherwise, the employee should relocate to space with an increased ability to distance to consume food or beverages.
Check Your LCPS Email Regularly
Workplace
Summer Work Opportunities
There will be summer work opportunities for bus drivers and bus attendants. If you are interested in working this summer then please apply online in Oracle. The IRC number for bus driver is IRC29891 and the IRC number for bus attendant is IRC29895. We will be delivering meals, taking students to school for summer school, ESY, COVID recovery, credit recovery and field trips, to name a few. Service will also need help transporting buses.
If you are interested in any of these positions or being a substitute then please apply. We have also sent out a survey to capture your work preferences since the Oracle program does not ask those questions. Please take a few minutes to fill that survey out once you have applied. If you have any questions then please see your Lead. Survey Link
Dispatch Reminders
When scheduled to be OFF or RETURNING to work, please CALL into DISPATCH to make sure they have it updated even if you have communicated with your LEAD. Dispatch wants to make sure your run is covered and the do not want to double cover a route. They also want to make sure you are not charged leave unintentionally.
Bus numbers and names on route sheets are inconsistent at this time. When calling out, please give the best details to your dispatcher so that they have the correct information to have the route covered. Any help to prevent the run from not being covered accurately or running late would be greatly appreciated.
REMEMBER, the overnight Emergency Call out form is for EMERGENCIES ONLY. Please wait to call Dispatch when possible. The dispatcher will have the opportunity to ask questions about your route if needed.
Make sure you are calling in when you are on STANDBY for any portion of your run. Dispatch may need you to cover something. We also keep a log and TAA refers to it when needed.
When receiving a call from 571-252-1700, the call can be from ANYONE within transportation. Please check your voicemail to know who called you. It is not always Dispatch.Report Absences To Dispatch
Contact Dispatch using the following applicable timeframe:
Mondays
- AM Time Frame - Dispatch opens at 5:00 AM. Driver/Attendant calls in 1 hour prior to the start of their route or at 5:00 AM should the route start between 5:00 AM – 6:00 AM.
- Mid-day Time Frame - Driver/Attendant calls in 1 hour prior to the start of their route.
- PM Time Frame - Driver/Attendant calls in 1 hour prior to the start of their route.
Tuesday - Friday
- AM Time Frame - Dispatch opens at 5:00 AM. Driver/Attendant calls in 1 hour prior to the start of their route or at 5:00 AM should the route start between 5:00 AM – 6:00 AM.
- Mid-day Time Frame - Driver/Attendant calls in 1 hour prior to the start of their route.
- PM Time Frame Driver/Attendant calls out with Dispatch by 12:30 PM.
Reminders From The Training Office
Evaluation time is here! All employees MUST be in compliance with all training requirements.
January In-service Reminder: Have you completed the January 19, 2021 make-up In-Service meeting? If not, you should have received an email on April 13, 2021 encouraging you to complete the make-up meeting either online or to schedule an in-person meeting. Failure to complete the mandatory In-service may negatively impact your evaluation. Please refer to the April 13th email for Schoology login instructions and access code. If you are unable to complete the online course, please call the Training Office at 571-252-1720.
Upcoming Expirations in CPR, First Aid, or Modules: The Training Office sends monthly emails to employees for upcoming expirations; CPR, First Aid, and Modules. This email will contain the Schoology login instructions and the access code for the specific class. Don’t know if you’re approaching expiration in a particular training class? Please call the Training Office at 571-252-1720 or email TRNTraining@lcps.org to receive your expiration dates.
$$$ DID YOU KNOW TRANSPORTATION OFFERS A REFERRAL BONUS? $$$
Any LCPS employee who refers a bus driver can receive $500. Upon completion of the training program the LCPS referring employee will receive $500. Once the referred new driver completes 90 working days (incident/accident free) they will receive $500. Tell your friends and family!
Schoology Reminder: When taking online courses through Schoology, please remember to spend the required amount of time on each course. You must watch each video in its entirety, answer the review questions for each section, and view the conclusion page to receive full credit for completing the course.
BUS DRIVER/BUS ATTENDANT *TRAINEES*: Please do not take ANY Safe Schools training until you have completed the training program. You may receive emails requiring you to complete the training – please disregard those emails at this time. Once you have completed the training program, we will prompt you to take the required Safe Schools training.
Masks On Buses
All buses should have a supply of disposable masks on board in the event a student arrives at the bus without one. They can be obtained from the Lead Drivers.
Masks and Special Needs Students
All students who ride the bus must wear a mask, HOWEVER there is an exception for Special Needs students who, for medical or psychological reasons, cannot tolerate a mask and therefore are not required to wear one.
Guidance when any student comes to the bus without mask.
If at home stop, ask parent if student can wear a mask and if they have one with them (provide mask if needed).
- If YES: ask parent if they want to help student put mask on before boarding, if the student can do it themselves, or if it’s ok for you to assist with putting it on before they board the bus
- IF NO: assist student with boarding, ensure that they are seated in a manner that follows safety guidelines, not next to other students and that they are secure in the seat
If at school, ask teacher/staff same question – is student able to wear a mask and if they have one with them (provide mask if needed).
- If YES: ask staff if they want to help student put mask on before boarding, if the student can do it themselves, or if it’s ok for you to assist
- If NO: assist student with boarding, ensure that they are seated in accordance with safety guidelines, not next to other students and that they are secure in the seat
Seating Charts
Seating charts need to be completed for every run on the route sheet, all grade levels. Blank copies are available from your Lead Driver if needed.
Cleaning High Touch Areas On The Bus
High touch areas on school buses must be cleaned after morning, mid-day and afternoon runs.
Bus Ventilation
Report That Accident
Bus drivers are responsible to immediately report all accidents to Dispatch and submit written statements on the accident form to your Lead Driver by the next workday.
Fueling
Headcount Sheets
Drivers will receive headcount sheets for their new runs that begin on 4/20/21. The counts are now for the entire run, not each stop. Please take a moment and look the sheet over to make sure you are filling in accurate information. Sample headcount sheet.
Your cooperation is greatly appreciated.
Don't Make A Mistake!
Selecting Routes On The Tablet
Choose your runs daily on the tablet. It is very important; it allows parents to track their child’s bus and maintains a record of substitutions.
Kindergarten Students
Kindergarten students must be met by a parent, sibling or guardian every time they exit the school bus. Here is a great VIDEO which outlines the complete Kindergarten process.
"Super Sweet" Gail Deggs
Another Happy Parent
Making A Huge Impact In A Child's Life! Thank You Ms. Tatyana – Bus #1902
I am writing to you today to share how my son's bus driver has made a positive impact on his life. My son is currently a Senior at Freedom High School and MATA. As a special needs student who struggles with anxiety, my son was terrified to return to in person learning when MATA brought all students back for hybrid learning. Because his class was not being offered in a 100% distance learning format, he felt that his only choice was to drop out of the program. He thought that the anxiety that he associated with school would be too much for him during these times. However, the bus driver that he had ridden with years before for 6th, 7th, and 8th grades, Ms. Tatyana Veskov, changed that without even knowing it. When I told my son that Ms. Tatyana would be his bus driver for his hybrid day at MATA he said to me, "I'm still going to be scared at school, but if I know that I'm going to be with Ms. Tatyana in the morning and afternoon I think I can handle it."
Thank you, Ms. Tatyana for creating an environment on your bus that is a safe and comfortable place for my son to begin and end the school day. Because of you, he will graduate this year not only with his high school diploma, but with his career certificate from MATA.
Diana Leigh