Each morning bus drivers for the Peace Wapiti Public School Division cover an area of 16,000 square kilometers, roughly half the size of Vancouver Island. That means that when it comes to deciding whether or not to cancel bus service on a morning with particularly bad weather, Director of Transportation Ted Gobin has a big job to do.
Starting at 4 am Gobin and another employee will check weather conditions and drive 150 to 200 km of primary and secondary highways, testing braking and skid conditions. A decision on what buses to be cancelled has to be made by 6 am. Individual bus drivers also have the ability to cancel their routes in the morning if they have made an attempt to get started and feel it is not safe enough.
Parents are reminded to make sure the school district has their up to date contact information so they can be reached in the case of a bus cancellation as we move into cold weather months.