You and your family have just arrived in Montreal, and you have a thousand things to figure out, for yourself and for your kids. Naturally, you are concerned about sending your children go to school on their own, especially in a new city where you’ve just moved and you still don’t know your way around. How will they get there? What will it cost? Will they be under anyone’s supervision? And so forth. These are all questions that we will answer.

Perhaps you’re familiar with these yellow buses pictured above? Yes, they are part of the classic cliché of American schools. Likewise in Canada, we have very similar buses that drive students to and from school.

School transportation in Montreal is free. It is funded by the transportation and education departments and organized by private bus companies such as Chartrand Inc. Keep in mind however, if you exercise your right to choose a different school for your kids, they might lose their access to free bus transportation. Only students who attend the school determined by the commission scolaire de Montréal (school board), based on their home address, will benefit from public school bussing.

Rules for safety are strict and controlled by the Ministry of Transportation itself, which contributes to the funding of bus safety and the safety around schools.

On the way to school, students are protected by one of the several hundred school crossing guards employed throughout the city of Montreal. These public servants take responsibility for the safety of your children on their way to school by managing traffic and ensuring the welfare of your children. Note that if there is a distance between your home and the bus stop, the Commission scolaire de Montréal (school board) places school crossing guards at the busiest intersections.

School transportation is open to all children of preschool and first and second grades of primary school if they live at least one kilometer from their school and to pupils in third and fourth grades of primary school residing more than 1.6 km from their school.

For the fifth and sixth grades, the Province pays 70% of the cost of public transportation if your children live at least 1.6km from their school.

If you are interested in school transportation, don’t forget to apply to your school during registration. This will ensure that your little darlings go to school safely and with pleasure.

To learn more about education and schooling in Montréal, take a look at some of these related articles.

PHOTO CREDIT: Unsplash

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