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Dozens of children in Ottawa will soon be eligible to take a school bus to class instead of walking, over concerns that their routes take them past shelters and drop-in centres.
The Ottawa Student Transportation Authority (OSTA) says it’s designating new “community hazard zones” around certain emergency and transitional support services. They include shelters, drop-ins and addiction treatment centres.
Around 60 students who walk to school past one of these zones will now be able to take a school bus instead, OSTA said.
“One child injured — or even exposed to an environment they are not developmentally equipped to comprehend — is one too many,” OSTA wrote in a news release.
5 schools affected
The change affects students at five schools in and around Ottawa’s downtown, including in Lowertown and Chinatown.
Those schools are:
Devonshire Community Public School.St. Anthony School.Cambridge Street Community Public School.York Street Public School. Viscount Alexander Public School.
While OSTA said no particular incident spurred this decision, it noted an increase in safety concerns expressed by parents, school administrators and the wider community.
The students will become eligible to ride the bus to school starting March 9.