1. | VOLUNTEER DRIVERS & DIRECTION OF STUDENT TRANSPORTATION1.1. | This regulation addresses curricular and extra-curricular transportation of students where specific volunteer drivers, including staff, are organized, directed and supervised by the school district. | | 1.2. | School District No. 36 (Surrey) is responsible for supervision of students during instructional time and must control any related transportation. | 1.3. | Outside of the scope of this regulation is: transportation to or from the student’s home, group transportation via commercial carriers and emergency medical transportation. |
|
2. | COMMUNICATION WITH PARENTS2.1. | Where student activities involve transportation by volunteer drivers, parents are to be informed and must consent to the arrangements. | | 2.2. | If the volunteer driver is a Novice (“N”) driver and a student, written consent for the use of the Novice (“N”) driver must be obtained from:| a) | Parents of students to be transported; and | | b) | Parents of the student volunteer driver. |
| | 2.3. | If the volunteer driver is an adult Novice (“N”) driver, written consent for the use of the Novice (“N”) driver must be obtained from the parents of non- related students to be transported. | | 2.4. | Refer to Section 3.5 of this regulation for further information regarding the use of a Novice (“N”) driver. |
|
3. | SELECTION OF VOLUNTEER DRIVERS3.1. | Selection of volunteer drivers should include consideration of the following criteria and may include other factors the Educator-In-Charge and principal deem appropriate. | 3.2. | Driver licensing must be in British Columbia and appropriate to the licensing of the vehicle being utilized and number of persons to be transported. Most drivers have Class 5 licenses. A Class 4 driver’s license is required for student travel if the vehicle is licensed for private purposes with a seating capacity of more than ten (up to 25) including the driver. | 3.3. | The driver must be competent to drive. The applicant’s driving record may be reviewed by examining a Driver’s License Abstract which may be obtained by:| a) | The driver visiting the Motor Vehicles Branch and obtaining the abstract on an over-the-counter basis at no charge; or | | b) | The school applying on the appropriate form and paying the required fee to the Motor Vehicles Branch in order to receive a response in three to four weeks. |
| 3.4. | Use of Learner (“L”) drivers as volunteer drivers is strictly prohibited. | 3.5. | Use of Novice (“N”) drivers as volunteer drivers is discouraged. Novice (“N”) drivers should not normally be utilized by the school district to transport students as:| a) | There are legal restrictions on their ability to drive and transport passengers:- “N” sign must be displayed at the back of the car.
- Zero alcohol or cannabis blood content; and
- Limit of one (1) passenger. *
To transport additional passengers, a supervisor aged 25 or older with a valid driver’s license (class 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5) must accompany the driver. (Note: The restriction of one (1) passenger does not apply if the additional passengers are immediate family members of the driver.)
| | b) | They are less experienced drivers.
| | c) | District requirements for informed consent for the use of Novice (“N”) drivers, as described in 2.2 and 2.3 necessitate additional administrative burden to utilize these drivers.
|
| 3.6. | Volunteer suitability should be considered with the factors enunciated in Policy #10310 - School Volunteers and its regulation being a reference.
| 3.7. | Vehicle fitness is to be certified by the driver. If something indicates a vehicle may not be roadworthy, it must not be utilized.
| 3.8. | Vehicle licensing must be in British Columbia.
| 3.9. | A vehicle defined as a bus (seating capacity of more than ten) must have $10 million of liability insurance coverage and a bus permit.
|
|
4. | ORIENTATION OF VOLUNTEER DRIVERS |
5. | VEHICLE PASSENGER RESTRAINT SYSTEMS5.1. | All automobile passengers are required by the Motor Vehicle Act to wear a seatbelt. | 5.2. | Where a vehicle is equipped with a front passenger air bag, vehicle manufacturers recommend that children age 12 and under should not occupy that seat. | 5.3. | Booster seats are required for children over 18 kg. (40 lbs) until they are 9 years old unless they have reached the height of 145 cm (4’9”). |
|
6. | DOCUMENTATION6.1. | A Driver Registration form is provided for schools to facilitate documentation, selection and authorization of volunteer drivers. This documentation is to be retained in the school’s file (Records Classification File #11150-20) and updated annually or when the information provided changes.
| 6.2. | The Staff/Volunteer Transportation Record form is designed to facilitate orderly recording of field study and extra-curricular transportation arrangements at the school. It is to be filed with the school’s file on the field study (Records Classification File #11150-20).
|
|
7. | INSURANCE COVERAGE FOR VOLUNTEER DRIVERS7.1. | Volunteer drivers occasionally inquire regarding insurance coverage. The following is intended to establish a general understanding of the matter. The precise attributes of insurance coverage are established by the legal language within the insurance policies and are interpreted by courts.
| 7.2. | A volunteer driver, for the purposes of this insurance discussion, is voluntarily acting on behalf of or assisting the school district while using or operating a vehicle not owned by the district.
| 7.3. | First, in the event of a motor vehicle accident, insurance claims are satisfied pursuant to the terms of the insurance coverage carried on the vehicle involved.
| 7.4. | Second, the Schools Protection Program provides substantial additional liability coverage above the vehicles’ insurances.
|
|
10. | HISTORY |
