Transportation
Safe • Knowledgeable • Reliable
Canadian Rockies Public Schools Transportation proudly and safely transports over 1,250 Bow Valley students to and from school, on field trips, to sports events and outdoor programs each day.
Buses Running During Inclement Weather Days
Our first priority is always the safety of our students, drivers and fleet. There are many factors that come into play when deciding to cancel buses. The transportation department is always monitoring changes in weather and decisions to cancel buses are made in the morning before the bus routes start. We realize that many families rely on our transportation services for their children’s learning opportunities so many considerations are taken into account when determining bus cancellations. As there are many variables, school bus transportations may be cancelled by route, town or the entire division. If the transportation department decides not to cancel buses, parents and guardians always have the final decision whether or not to send their child to the bus stop.
Notifications will be posted on the Bus Status app and on the CRPS website by clicking on the Bus Status link at the top. Always check the Bus Status before sending your child to the bus stop.
Inclement Weather Bus Tips:
Always check the status of your child's bus before heading to the bus stop. You can do this by checking the crps.ca website or downloading the Bus Status 4 app. Did you know that if you download the app and follow your child’s bus you can receive notifications if there is a change in your child's bus status?
Please make sure your child is dressed appropriately for the weather. Even if students do not want to wear the items they should bring them on the bus in a bag/backpack so they have access to them in the event of an unforeseen circumstance.
Stay with your child at the bus stop until they have been picked up or ensure they know what to do and where to go if their bus doesn’t arrive.
School bus technology has come a long way over the years in providing advanced comfort and safety features. Today’s buses offer larger windows, more headroom, comfier seating, and are equipped with much more powerful, yet environmentally friendly engines, which provide better fuel efficiencies and much lower harmful emissions. CRPS' Transportation Department is proud to offer a modern fleet for the schools of the Bow Valley and our valued charter customers.
Our regular investment in fleet modernization reflects CRPS' strong commitment to premier service and offers our passengers a safe and comfortable travel experience while simultaneously minimizing our environmental footprint in the Canadian Rockies.
Always the best choice in the Canadian Rockies!
We believe in what we do! From the Superintendent of Canadian Rockies Public Schools to the staff of every department, CRPS resonates a genuine commitment for the safety of our students, whether on the road or in class. Safety and maintenance have always been the foundation of our bus operations; they are visible in our people and in our safe, reliable, and well-maintained vehicles.
For over 30 years CRPS has safely transported the students of the Bow Valley to and from school and on their field trips without any serious incidents - not even one! That is a remarkable achievement and it speaks volumes about the culture of safety, our staff, and our dedication to operating a well maintained and reliable fleet for our passengers.
Driver Training
We believe our passengers deserve a safe and professional driver and that’s who they get with CRPS.
The key to that promise is finding the best people, with the right personalities, training them for success, providing the safe equipment and tools they need, and creating a supportive atmosphere to flourish and develop in. When these elements are realized they encourage long-term engagement, and consequently very experienced employees who’ve progressed far along their paths of professional development; they are, the safe and professional drivers that we promise. The CRPS Transportation Department is a licensed driving school for the required class of license to drive a School Bus.
Our analysis of training priorities was developed to counteract the aspects of risk associated with the responsibilities of drivers. That sounds pretty simple until you accumulate a list of those responsibilities.
For example, school bus drivers are mechanical bus inspectors, professional defensive drivers, on-board student managers and safety providers, first-aiders, special needs passenger specialists, government compliance facilitators, record keepers, conflict mediators, routing specialists, bus cleaners, and list goes on. Theirs is a job where thinking on your feet and reacting to changing traffic or human circumstances is commonplace and that’s where CRPS training strategies support our drivers making the right decisions every time.
Our training programs are focused on real-life school bus driving, always ongoing and never end. They challenge our drivers to continuously improve, and we monitor our drivers to ensure there are no gaps in their competencies.
Preventative Bus Maintenance
Whoever said "if it ain't broke don't fix it" never worked at CRPS Transportation (or took English class), because our preventative maintenance program is designed to identify mechanical problems at their earliest stage and correct them before “they break” and impact safety. Proactive inspection and professional maintenance of equipment is the foundation of our reliability and safe bus fleet.
The school bus industry is extremely regulated. There is simply no room for error. Mandatory inspections form an important component of those regulations and we take that responsibility to heart. Inspections are the best tool in finding potential problems at their earliest stage so they can be resolved without developing any further.
Inspect – Identify - Rectify
Driver Inspections
CRPS drivers play a vital role in the inspection of our buses.
Drivers are trained do a compulsory and documented inspection of their bus every day before they leave the yard and again afterwards.
They become very familiar with their bus and how it normally performs and are often the first people to become aware of something out of the ordinary that may need attention.
Quarterly Mechanical Inspections
Detailed and documented inspections are conducted on every CRPS bus by journeyman mechanics every 3 months to gain a complete determination about the condition of every component. Regular service is performed on items like oil and various filters and any aspect of the mechanical systems that needs addressing is corrected.
CRPS did not achieve our remarkable three decade long safety record “by accident” but rather through a well-designed training, inspection and preventative maintenance program.
Who doesn't remember their school bus driver... and why is that?
Years after we moved on from our high school graduation, most of us can still remember the driver who took us to school each day way back when. We've all met countless people over the years, but the individuals we remember seem to be the ones who have impacted us for the better; the ones who helped shape us through their actions.
Perhaps it was special moments when our driver made us all laugh, or when they recognized something we really liked and insisted that we tell them all about it, or when they stood up for us with other kids, or perhaps when they just made us feel good about ourselves, knew our name and asked us how school was that day.
We likely didn't grasp at the time just how much effort our bus driver was making to keep us safe and on time for school, but rather it was the personal sense we felt and came to admire about them, and that’s what most of us remember years later.
It really is a special kind of person that can safely deliver students to and from school, day in and day out, navigating a mix of traffic, road and weather conditions while at the same time interacting with and becoming a role model for their riders.
Canadian Rockies Public Schools appreciates and applauds all of our drivers for their dedication to our students. It's going to be remembered.
What People Are Saying About CRPS Transportation
"Our students came back absolutely raving about their trip, and what a fantastic time they had. They adored and admired your driver tremendously, and gave glowing reports of their experience. Thank you again for all your help!" ~ Jane Crichton, Calgary, AB
"The Town of Canmore has used CRPS buses during school breaks for over a decade to provide transportation for our children's day camps. The buses are clean, on time and the staff have always been willing to accommodate our needs and help us out in a pinch! We love working with them!" ~ Eva Caverhill, Child & Youth Coordinator, Town of Canmore
"Our experience with the CRPS bus services and personnel has been extremely positive over a number of years. Having a variety of bookings for our children and youth programs, we have consistently had friendly and prompt customer services from the booking requests to the arrival and transportation of our staff and participants. The buses have unfailingly been on time, flexible in accommodating minor changes to our schedule and professional on all accounts. I am pleased to have friendly and reliable bus service available locally." ~ Jessica Price, Town of Banff Children and Youth Program Coordinator Community Services
"We used CRPS to transport about 100 students for our Rotary Youth Leadership Program. They provided reliable and punctual service with friendly drivers. We’re grateful that one of the drivers went above and beyond in helping a student recover their lost phone.We would definitely use their services again for our program. Thanks CRPS!" ~ Caitlyn Hall-Sharp, Chair of Rotary Youth Leadership Awards
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Transportation Office Hours
Please note our summer office hours are 8 a.m. - 2 p.m. weekdays!
Our regular hours during the school year are:
On school days, we are open 7:30 -11:30 a.m., and 1:30 - 4:30 p.m.
On half-day Fridays, we are open from 7 a.m. - 2 p.m.
Closed weekends and holidays