8 changes to expect when using transportation to get to school during the pandemic

As parents and students prepare to head back to school, there are a lot of questions about what transportation will look like.

Students can expect the eight transportation changes for the 2020-21 academic year:

1. Cleaning and disinfecting should be expected for frequently touched surfaces on school buses at least daily or between use as much as possible. See more CDC guidelines for transit operators here.

2. Drivers should practice all safety actions and protocols as indicated for other staff, like frequently washing hands and wearing cloth face coverings. To clean and disinfect school buses or other transport vehicles, see guidance for bus transit operators. See more considerations for schools on CDC website.

3. Drivers will have their temperature checked daily.

4. Bus layouts will be modified to create distance between children, like seating children one child per row or skip rows, when possible.

5. Suffolk Transportation Service says its back-to-school safety plan includes ventilation with windows cracked.

6. In some vehicles, the seat behind the bus driver will also always be empty.

7. Students will have to wear masks during the entire trip.
8. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, some bus, train and subway service may change - plan your trip before the first day of school, and keep up with updates from the school, bus and mass transit companies.