Sudbury-Manitoulin area parents encouraged to register their child for a seat on the school bus

Sudbury -

With less than six weeks before elementary and secondary students head back to class, parents in the Sudbury-Manitoulin area are being encouraged to register their child for bus transportation.

“All children who were virtually learning last year have been put on buses,” said Renee Boucher, executive director of the Sudbury Student Services Consortium.

“It’s now up to those parents to let us know to opt them out.”

Boucher said there are 20,000 students eligible for transportation in all of the area school boards. She added the consortium is waiting to hear from the Ministry of Education about its back-to-school health protocols for students taking the bus.

“In the Sudbury consortium, we are getting ready and moving forward with the same precautions that were put in place last year,” Boucher said.

She said vaccinated and unvaccinated students will not be separated on the bus, but strict health protocols will remain in place.

Those protocols include students riding the bus will need to wear a mask, hand sanitizer will be available for students, and drivers will also need to wear a mask.

Last year, the consortium and bus operators had a tough time recruiting drivers because of the pandemic. However, Boucher said some drivers are coming back in the fall.

“Now that they are vaccinated, they are now coming back -- and that’s great news,” she said.

The new school year in the Sudbury area starts the week of Labour Day.