Bus Eligibility and Route Design

  • Bus Eligibility Criteria
    Transportation is available for students who live two miles or more from their assigned school and routes are created to enhance student safety while maximizing vehicle efficiency. Distances are measured according to the method outlined in the TEA (Texas Education Agency) School Transportation Handbook. 

    • Stops are created that allow students to wait off the main roadway for the bus if at all possible.
    • Stops are also created to minimize students walking on highly traveled roadways for long distances without sidewalks.
    • Stops are not placed in cul-de-sacs or dead end streets to minimize bus accidents while backing up (backing is a very dangerous maneuver for a school bus).
    • Stops are spread as far apart as criteria will allow in order to decrease te number of stops hence 'door to door' service will not be provided
    • Decreasing the number of stops a bus will make on its route minimizes ride time for students.
    • Students who do not ride at least 3 days a week will be removed from the route*

    Stops with no riders for 3 consecutive days may be dropped from the route**

    Elementary students may be required to walk up to .50 of a mile to a bus stop. 
    Middle School and High School students may be required to walk up to 1 mile to a bus stop. 

    Bus routes are designed to limit student ride time to no more than 45 minutes one-way if at all possible; however, most students ride under 30 minutes one-way. 

    Kindergarten and 1st Grade Students
    All K and 1st grade students must have a parent, approved adult or sibling (3rd grade or older) present at the bus stop in order for the younger student to be released from the bus. If no adult or sibling is present, or if the parent or approved adults cannot be contacted, the student(s) will be returned to their home campus for pick up. Every driver has a roster of their students and their listed bus stops to assist in drop-off verification. 

    However, if you choose for your K or 1st grade student to be released from the bus without a parent, approved adult or sibling (3rd grade or older) present, please notify us of your decision by emailing pisdbus@prosper-isd.net and include your students legal name with the subject line of 'Letter of Release'. 

    Arrival Times
    Students should be at the bus stop 5 minutes prior to the scheduled pick-up time. To ensure prosper pick-up, students need to be physically at the stop when the bus arrives

    Dismissal Times
    Elementary students are released at 3:00, buses are loaded and released from campus by administration around 3:05/3:10, Middle School releases at 3:30, buses load and are released from campus by administration around 3:35/3:40, High School releases at 4:10, buses are loaded and are released by administration around 4:20.

    Please note: Stop times reflect the expected times the bus should arrive during good weather. Inclement weather, train or traffic congestion may cause the route to run later than scheduled. If the route will be more than 10 minutes late, we will notify you via ConnectEd (text and email). Please ensure your contact information stays up to date by relaying changes throguh the registrar at your students campus. 

    If your child will be receiving Special Education services, and you have questions about their route, please contact pisdbus@prosper-isd.net with the subject line ATTN: SpED.

    *If your student is removed from the route and should need a ride, email pisdbus@prosper-isd.net with the subject line Transportation Needed.

    **If your bus stop is removed from the route due to inactivity and your student will begin riding at least 3 days per week, email pisdbus@prosper-isd.net to have it reinstated. 

    Restricted Areas
    Prosper ISD buses will not enter dead-end streets or personal property except when approved by the Director of Transportation. Large buses are restricted to go down cul-de-sacs. 

    Board Approved Exception Busing
    In rare cases, whereas, the Board acknowledges the Education Code 42.155 (d) provisions stating that a hazardous condition exists where no walkway is provided and students must walk along or across a freeway or expressway, an underpass, an overpass or bridge, an uncontrolled major traffic artery, an industrial or commercial, or another comparable condition. 

    As Prosper ISD grows, the hazardous routes change. Sometimes new home construction requires the addition of new bus routes. Other times, improvements to the district's pedestrian infrastructure eliminate what the state considers to be hazardous conditions, allowing more children to walk to school.