October 19 is Bus Driver Appreciation Day!
Rain or shine, sleet or snow—every year HSC drivers travel thousands of kilometres to safely deliver HSC students to and from school.
They are the first face many students see at the beginning of the school day, and the last when they depart for home. Bus drivers and the entire HSC transportation department play a critical role in book-ending the HSC experience.
As College employees, drivers are part of the HSC community, and the College’s culture of excellence is evident in the care they show their young passengers.
Transportation at HSC is an epic undertaking, with more than 1000 students busing to and from the College every day. Thirty-three drivers cover 28 individual routes, and the fleet includes two full-time charter buses for school trips, three part-time spare drivers, on part-time spare drive and two noon-hour runs. Buses pick up and drop off students across four municipalities.
Riding the bus is an opportunity for students to build resilience and independence. Drivers are trained to help new and younger riders adjust, but after a few days of taking the bus, most students fall into a comfortable routine.
All of our drivers are certified through the Ministry of Transportation. They receive hours of training in how to manage student behaviour, safe loading and unloading of the buses, defensive driving and emergency medical and evacuation procedures.
Every bus driver deals with unpredictable traffic and the occasional rowdy rider. Bad weather, however, poses the biggest challenges, and ice and fog are the two worst road conditions. In 49 years of safe-driving a bus and truck (13 at HSC), veteran driver Bob Panter has seen it all.
“There is definitely some anxiety that comes with bad weather,” says Bob. “But over the years, the training and experience we have has prepared us for any kind of weather.”
Drivers transport students ages three years old to Grade 12, and those who stay on the same route over the years will see many children grow up and eventually graduate. They get to know students, teachers and parents. Whether they have been behind the wheel at HSC for two years or for 20, all bus drivers agree that their interaction with the younger generation is the most rewarding element of the job.
“They are not your children,” says Bob, “but when you see them graduate and hear that they have gone on to be successful, it touches you. You are proud of them.”