By Darrell Kirby | [email protected]

They crisscross the Granite School District boundaries every school day—the yellow buses that transport thousands of students to and from school. 

Except for rare instances, the drivers of those buses get kids to and from school safely and without accident. And this year, they have also been tasked with ensuring their young passengers are kept safe from COVID-19 while in their vehicles. 

The work of school bus drivers was highlighted during an event at Granger High School recently as part of School Bus Safety Week. 

“They have difficult jobs and the pandemic has made it even more challenging, but they have conscientiously adapted and regularly update procedures to keep students safe,” said state Rep. Elizabeth Weight (D-West Valley City), who sponsored a resolution during the 2020 legislative session to call attention to the professionalism of school bus drivers throughout Utah. 

Specifically, the resolution “recognizes school bus drivers for their exemplary work” that includes:

• Driving a school bus while navigating road and weather hazards;
• Inspecting school buses to ensure the safety of the students who ride the bus;
• Identifying signs of sexual harassment, bullying, and other abuse;
• Communicating with the parents of students who ride the bus;
• Helping students with medical needs and disabilities; and
• Performing all of their duties and responsibilities while avoiding distractions.

In the Granite School District, about 130 buses take some 8,200 students to and from 86 elementary, junior high, and high schools each day. Hundreds of students are also transported throughout the year to various sporting and extracurricular activities both in and out of the district. Transportation director Dave Gatti says it takes a Herculean effort carried out by a staff of 180 full-time and substitute drivers, plus dispatchers, mechanics, and other support staff. 

Added to the job this year has been the constant cleaning and sanitizing of each bus and ensuring masks are worn by everyone on board to minimize the risk of COVID-19 transmission among students and drivers. “We haven’t had an outbreak” of the virus on buses, Gatti said. That doesn’t mean that all drivers and passengers have been free of COVID-19, but he says there is no indication they have contracted or spread the disease while riding the bus.

Before, during, and after the pandemic, Gatti says the goal of everyone in the district’s transportation department has been and will continue to be to move kids without accidents. “Very, very seldom do we see an accident as a result of a school bus driver being at fault,” he said, adding that Granite District buses travel 2 million miles a year. 

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says children are far safer going to school  on a bus. “Students are about 70 times more likely to get to school safely when taking a bus instead of traveling by car,” according to the NHTSA website. “That’s because school buses are the most regulated vehicles on the road; they’re designed to be safer than passenger vehicles in preventing crashes and injuries.”

Ultimately, Gatti says buses are only as safe as the men and women operating them. “Our drivers are nothing short of heroes.”