First Student Kicks Off Second Annual Safety Dog Bus Tour

August 4, 2016 - Cincinnati - School transportation leader First Student shines a spotlight on safe school bus behavior this back-to-school season and beyond by kicking off its second-annual Safety Dog Bus Tour.

"Student safety is at the heart of everything we do," said First Student President Dennis R. Maple. "The Safety Dog Bus Tour encourages the best possible start to the school year by engaging thousands of students and parents within the communities we serve and reinforcing valuable safety messages in a fun and memorable way."

This year, the Tour expands to partner with nine school districts, including the first stop in Canada.

Tour stops include:

Buffalo Public Schools in New York

Halton Student Transportation Services in Ontario, Canada

New Haven Public Schools in Connecticut

McLean County Unit 5 School District in Normal, Illinois

Olathe Public Schools in the Kansas City area

San Francisco Unified School District

Seattle Public Schools

Wausau School District in Wisconsin

Woodland Hills School District near Pittsburgh

The nationwide Safety Dog Bus Tour uses fun, interactive activities to teach safe bus riding basics to elementary school students and their parents.

Students can explore a First Student bus; "Walk the Yellow Carpet" and pose for a photo with Safety Dog, the safety mascot for First Student; sign a safety pledge and leave with a bag full of goodies.

Parents have an opportunity to learn why school buses are the safest way to transport their children to and from school. They see firsthand how First Student buses are designed for safety inside and out.

This year, stop arm safety will be a point of emphasis. The Tour aims to remind motorists that they, too, have an important role in keeping bus riders safe. A recent survey suggests that there could be more than 13 million illegal stop-arm passes during a school year.

Tour dates, times, locations, safety tips and downloadable activities for students and parents are available at safetydogbustour.com. Safety tips and tour updates also can be found by following First Student on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram as well as the #SafetyDogBusTour hashtag.

The 2016 Tour kicks off on August 16 in Olathe, Kansas.

About First Student, Inc.
As the leading school transportation solutions provider in North America, First Student strives to provide the best start and finish to every school day. First Student completes six million student journeys each day, moving more passengers than all U.S. airlines combined. With a team of highly-trained drivers and the industry's strongest safety record, First Student delivers reliable, quality services including full-service transportation and management, special-needs transportation, route optimization and scheduling, and charter services for 1,200 school district contracts. For more information, please visit firststudentinc.com.