Seven-year-old Madilyn learning the "chicken wing" technique to safely get off a school bus using the emergency exit. (rdnewsNOW/Jordan Davidson)

By Jordan Davidson

Kids learning bus basics

First Rider bus program educates and entertains

Aug 18, 2021 | 3:12 PM

As students and parents get ready to return to school next month, school boards want to make sure first-time bus riders are also prepared.

The transportation departments from Chinook’s Edge, Wolf Creek, Red Deer Public, and Red Deer Catholic school divisions all teamed up for the First Rider bus safety event on Aug. 17.

The 45-minute program was held at the École Secondaire Notre Dame High School parking lot, with four activity stations. They included learning how to get on and off the bus in urban and rural settings, emergency evacuation procedures, and the proper way to ride the bus while in operation.

Parents and students learn about the safe and unsafe locations around a school bus while within city limits. (rdnewsNOW/Jordan Davidson)

Assistant Transportation Manager with Red Deer Catholic Regional Schools, Kelli Pickett, admitted that while everyone knows the iconic yellow school bus, it can be scary for kids who’ve never ridden one.

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“The big yellow bus, as much as they do love them, it can be very intimidating for them and a source of anxiety, so we try to alleviate those stresses,” Pickett said, noting education is good for parents too.

“We transport thousands of kids every day, and we just want to make sure they have the fundamental basics and the safety skills they need.”

Parents line up with their children as they get ready to take part in a school bus evacuation drill. (rdnewsNOW/Jordan Davidson)

Two Red Deer Rebels buses, provided by Prairie Bus Lines, were also on hand, where kids watched the Winnie-the-Pooh bus safety videos before moving onto the school buses.

One big difference between riding the bus in a rural versus an urban setting is that buses do not use their eight-way lights inside the city, so kids need to be aware of the danger zones when exiting the bus. They also learned where the safest place for them to stand is while they wait for the bus to pull away.

The evacuation drill had kids learning about emergency windows and demonstrating how to properly exit the emergency back door: put your arms into chicken wings, and let the people outside help you down.

After all stations were complete, kids went on a quick bus ride, where they learned about loading and unloading the bus correctly, as a type of graduation from the short program.

The First Rider program has seen at least 200 students participate yearly since beginning in 2009.

More information is at rdcrs.ca/transportation/first-rider.