Eligibility

Red Deer Public Schools establishes designated schools for each area of the city. Eligibility for transportation service is determined by the distance from a student's primary place of residence to their designated school. Students can only have 1 primary residence for eligibility purposes. Guidelines for determining these distances are established by Alberta Education. RDPSD uses a program called Busplanner to calculate routes and distances. Although there are other ways to calculate distances online, RDPSD will always refer to our software if there are any discrepancies. Eligibility is calculated using the walking distance from the sidewalk in front of the residence to the sidewalk in front of the school entrance using sidewalks, pathways, and alleyways (maintained or not).

Eligibile distance

• Grades K -12= 2.4 kms or greater from designated school.
• Grades K - 5 = Address is between 1.6 km and 2.39 kms from designated school ($150 Fee) 
• Grades K -12 school of choice= Address is 2.4 kms or greater from both school of choice and designated school. 
• Grades K-12 out of city= Address is greater than 2.4 kms from designated school and utilizing a stop that is greater than 2.4 kms to attending school- Please note that this only applies to schools that have yellow bus service and does not include City Transit (distances will need to be confirmed by RDPSD transportation department).

Ineligible students

Students who are ineligible for transportation because they reside less than the eligibile distance to school, may be able to access charter bus services for an additional fee as the district does not receive transportation funding for ineligible students. NOTE: Transportation may be provided if there is room available on the bus and the student resides along the existing bus route (new stops will not be created for ineligible students).

Availability is not guaranteed and is subject to change throughout the school year as (eligible) student numbers and routes change. All ineligible transportation costs must be paid at the time of application. Ineligible riders may have their seat rescinded if it's needed for an eligible student in which case all ineligible rider fees from would be returned based on the date that transportation was terminated.

*Please call the school for information pertaining to eligibility when attending an alternative program (i.e. Gateway Christian School, Escuella Vista Grande). If your question remains unanswered, call the District Transportation office @ 403-342-3724

Examples

1. As a regular elementary student and you live under the walking distance of 1.6 km to your designated elementary school and there is a bus available for your address, you are subject to a transportation fee of $300.00/year/ student for busing. 
2. As a regular elementary student and you live  2 kms from your designated school, you are subject to a transportation fee of $150/ year/ student for busing.
3. As a regular Westpark Middle School student and you live under the walking distance of 2.4 km to (your designated school of) Westpark Middle School and there is a bus available for your address, you are subject to a transportation fee of $300.00/year for busing. If you live further than 2.4 km away from Westpark Middle School, you are not subject to this fee. 
4. As a regular Central Middle School student, you live 2.7 kms from Central and 2.9 kms from Eastview (designated school), you would be considered eligible for a free city transit pass.