County school bus garage gearing up for start of classes

Related Photos

Rhea Parks, who teaches fourth- and fifth-grade reading at Mayfield Elementary, staples sea creatures bearing the names of her homeroom students on a bulletin board Monday. The school’s theme this year is “Dive into Learning.” Schools in the Madison County and Berea Independent school districts start Wednesday. Bill Robinson

August 10, 2010

Anonymous Special to the Register The Richmond Register Tue Aug 10, 2010, 10:00 AM EDT

RICHMOND — The staff at Madison County Schools transportation department has spent the short summer getting the buses ready for the coming school year, which begins Wednesday.

A huge improvement is the implementation of a new radio system provided by the Madison County Emergency Operations Center, to include new radios in all the buses. Each school will have their own “talk-group.” In previous years, all schools were on the same channel and buses had to wait for one school to clear the channel before they could talk to their school. Now the buses at each school will have a clear channel to communicate with their school or principal without the distraction of radio messages from other schools.

New exhaust systems were installed on 29 route buses that still had the old technology exhausts. A federal grant allowed for the installation of DOC and CCV kits on older buses that brought them up to current Environmental Protection Agency emissions standards. This improves the environment and the air.

Bus times, stop locations

With access to the Internet, bus schedules and stop locations are easily acceptable. Visit www.madison.kyschools.us and click on the bus icon on the home page. The icon will link to the Transfinder routing software. By entering your address, you are able to get a highlighted map along with bus route and time information.

For the first week of school, students need only to be standing out near the roadway and bus drivers will pick them up. If there is a “group stop” location, the bus driver will instruct students on the time and location for pick up. After the first week of school, new riders should call the bus garage for help. You can always find out bus route information by calling the bus garage at 624-4560.

Why is the bus late?

Is something wrong?

The first few days of school are an exciting time, but also can be confusing. Even with all the planning that happens during the summer months, new students, new roads and new routes pop up as the school year begins. Route adjustments can affect pickup and delivery times. Many reasons can be given for the delay in pickup or delivery during the first few weeks of school. Parents should know that delays in the morning and especially in the afternoon are common during the first few weeks of school and should be anticipated.

School bus regulations

Parents and students should familiarize themselves with the “Regulations For Pupils Riding Madison County School Buses.” These regulations are given out at the beginning of each school year and requires part of the handout be signed and returned to the principal. Additional copies can be obtained from the school or bus garage.

Did you know?

Madison County Schools buses travel more than 1.7 million miles each year. There are 140 a.m. and p.m. bus routes serving 16 schools and Bellevue Learning Center, and more than 8,000 Madison County Schools students are transported daily. Madison County Schools has two buses garages maintaining the fleet — one in Richmond and one in Berea.

For more information about school buses, call Skip Benton at the bus garage or e-mail skip.benton@madison.kyschools.us.

Text Only

Religion and Education

Christmas on Sunday prompts many church schedule changes
With Christmas falling on a Sunday, many local churches are planning Christmas eve services on Saturday night and altering their Sunday morning schedules.
All but one church contacted in a random sampling by the Richmond Register are canceling Sunday school on Christmas day.

December 23, 2011
Whitlock to leave school board Dec. 31
Doug Whitlock, the Eastern Kentucky University president who currently chairs the Madison County School Board, announced Thursday evening he will be leaving the school board Dec. 31.
Whitlock said time constraints prompted his decision. His first commitment is to his contractual position at the university, attempting to do both jobs would prevent him from doing justice to either obligation, he told the school board.

November 11, 2011 1 Photo
Rockin' reward rally
Martha Scarberry, vice-principal of B. Michael Caudill Middle School, crowd surfs with students Thursday morning during the school’s 1980’s rock star-themed Renaissance Reward Rally. The rally, featuring teacher skits, games, music and prize drawings, rewards students who have good grades and good attendance and have demonstrated good behavior.

November 4, 2011 3 Photos
EKU uses grant to help children with autism and their families
A series of grants from the WHAS Crusade for Children has enabled Eastern Kentucky University to enhance a program designed to assist children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and their families.
The University recently received $4,068.75 from the Crusade, the third consecutive year the Louisville station has assisted the ASD program, which was begun many years prior to the grants.

October 7, 2011
Church hosts fall festival on Saturday
Rosedale Baptist Church will host a fall festival Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., featuring a kids carnival, food and refreshments, festival sale and open house.

October 7, 2011
District finding ways to improve student growth
After last month’s release of Kentucky Core Content Test (KCCT) scores and the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) progress report, three Madison County Schools were labeled as NCLB Improvement Schools after falling short of their proficiency goals.

October 6, 2011
Musical extravaganza
Five-year-old Carson Bennett catches a foul ball while performing Thursday alongside Madison Central High School students in “What a Game” from the musical “Ragtime” during an in-school performance of the third-annual MCHS Fall Musical Revue. Public performances of the show, featuring selections from several musicals including “Annie,” “The Sound of Music,” “West Side Story,” “Annie Get Your Gun,” and others, are Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 3 p.m. in the MCHS Auditorium. Tickets, available at the door, are $8.

September 30, 2011 1 Photo
Fresh and delicious
Mayfield Elementary School is one of 128 Kentucky schools to receive a grant to participate in a program that will introduce a variety of fruits and vegetables to students.
As part of the federal Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program (FFVP) through the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Mayfield will receive $19,332.50 for the 2011-12 school year.

July 4, 2011 1 Photo
EKU to host Town and Gown annual conference
Eastern Kentucky University and the City of Richmond will host the International Town and Gown Association’s seventh annual University-City Relations Conference in 2012.

June 16, 2011
Former commissioner visits with local students
Madison County Schools students welcomed the opportunity Wednesday to speak with Gene Wilhoit, executive director for the Council of Chief State School Officers. Wilhoit traveled to Kentucky for a site visit with the six school districts in the state that are participating in an initiative to discover how education can be changed to better prepare students for their futures.

April 22, 2011
More Religion and Education Headlines

Religion and Education

Search Results

Related Photos

County school bus garage gearing up for start of classes

Have you ever attended a meeting of a local government agency or taxing district?

Site Map