Boston Latin School

2016-2017 School Year

Transportation and OneCard (Charlie Card) Questions

School Dismissal is at 2:15 pm.

The school buses will be parked along Avenue Louis Pasteur on the school side. If you plan to pick up your child, you must park across the street from the school.

Map of the MBTA Bus Routes

If you want to look up a bus route, go to the MBTA Website (www.mbta.com). The subtitle Schedules & Interactive Maps is located near the top of your screen on the right side. Click on the bus icon. Select a bus route to view the schedule and map. For example, select bus 39 (Forest Hills Station, Back Bay Station via Huntington Avenue). The time schedule for the bus will appear. The subtitle Schedules and Maps will appear on the right side of your screen. Click on the 39 Bus Upcoming Schedule. The map and the bus route will appear. You will need to increase the size of your screen in order to see the streets clearly.

Scroll down to the second page. Find the letters ls and the time 2:15 pm under the Weekday (Outbound) column. If you scroll down to the bottom of this page, you will find the definition. The letter l stands for Continues to Avenue Louis Pasteur & Kenmore Station and the letter s stands for Does NOT run during school vacation.

MBTA Transportation and OneCard Questions

1. On the first day of school, all BPS students will be able to ride the MBTA for free. All Boston Latin School students will receive their OneCards in their homeroom classes. The student’s name, identification number, photo and Boston Public Library Card number will be displayed on the front of the OneCard and the MBTA T-Pass (Charlie Card) will be on the back of the card containing the letter S or M7.

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“S” Displayed On the Charlie Card

Students who are in grades seven and eight and live less than one and a half miles from the school, and students who are in grades nine through twelve who live less than two miles from the school will have the letter “S” on their Charlie Cards. This is a Stored-Value Pass. Students will need to add money to this type of card. They must go to one of the MBTA stations to use the fare vending machine to add money onto their cards.

If the card is lost, the student will lose the money that was stored on the card. The school will not reimburse the student. A new card will need to be purchased from Ms. Webb for twenty dollars. After receiving the card, the student will need to go to one of the MBTA stations to use the fare vending machine in order to add money onto the card.

“M7” Displayed On Charlie Card

Students in grades seven and eight who live one and a half miles or more from the school, and students in grades nine through twelve who live two miles or more from the school will have M7 displayed on their Charlie Cards. The students will be able to ride the T for free.

2. What is a supplemental bus? The supplemental bus is an MBTA bus that has a designated location sign on the front of the vehicle. The supplemental bus is not a charter bus. Students who live in Allston, Brighton, Dorchester, Hyde Park, Jamaica Plain, Roxbury and West Roxbury will be able to ride the buses and will be dropped off in front of Boston Latin School. Students should look for the Avenue Louis Pasteur sign displayed on the front of the bus. The Supplemental Bus Schedule can be found on the BLS website (www.bls.org). Click on the Families Tab and then click on General Information (FAQs).

If you plan to pick up your child during dismissal time, you must park across the street from the school. The avenue becomes very congested during this time of day. There will also be road construction on the avenue. If you park on the same side as the school, you make it difficult for the buses to park. If you refuse to remove your car, a Boston Police Officer will give you a parking ticket.

During school dismissal time, the supplemental buses will be parked on the same side of our school. Buses will be parked from the beginning of the school’s large parking lot all the way to the end of the avenue next to Simmons College. School administrators will be outside during dismissal every day. Ms. Webb will direct students to their assigned buses.

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3. Can supplemental buses allow non-student passengers? Yes, the bus drivers are allowed to have non-student passengers ride the supplemental buses. However, many times this is difficult for the drivers to do because our students fill up the buses.

4. The morning supplemental bus was five minutes late picking up the students from the bus stop. All of the students were marked tardy. However, it wasn’t their fault. Can their tardies be excused? Yes, the tardies will only be excused if the students inform Ms. Webb after they have received their tardy passes from the school registrar. She will inform the school registrar to change the students’ tardies to Tardy Excused on their attendance. The parents may also contact Ms. Webb. Her email address is [email protected] and her telephone number is 617-635-8895, extension 153. She will also file a complaint with the MBTA. We also encourage parents to file complaints with the MBTA as well. The MBTA main number is 617-222-3200 and the website for filing a complaint is www.mbta.com. Click on Customer Support and then click on Customer Comment.

5. The supplemental bus didn’t show up this morning. My child had to take the regular MBTA bus to get to school. My daughter was marked tardy because she arrived to school at 7:58. Can her tardy be excused? If this happens, your child must receive a tardy slip from the school registrar. Then she must inform Ms. Webb. You should also email or call Ms. Webb to explain your child’s situation. The tardy will be changed to Tardy Excused. She will also file a complaint with the MBTA.

6. When my child tapped his OneCard on the bus meter, the driver told my child that the words Hot Keys displayed on the meter. He also told my son that the card was a stolen card, and that he must get a new one from school. What does Hot Keys mean? Will my child need to pay for a new OneCard? Hot Keys means that the card was deactivated or the card was stolen. Your son will need to give Ms. Webb his old OneCard in return for a new one free of charge.

7. My son told me last night that he left his textbook on the supplemental bus. Who do I call? You will need to contact the MBTA. The Lost and Found telephone numbers for the MBTA garages, subways and commuter rails are listed at the end of this document. When you speak to the employee at the Lost and Found Department, give a clear description of the lost article, the location, and the date and time when the article was lost.

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Also, call or email Ms. Webb with the description of the lost article, and the date and time when it was lost. She will call the MBTA during the school day for an update of the lost article. When a student forgets an article on the supplemental bus, subway, trolley or commuter rail, he/she should inform Ms. Webb as soon as possible. After the buses drop off our students in the morning, the drivers are assigned to drive different bus routes. If the article is still on the bus after the driver has completed his bus route and returned to his designated MBTA Garage, he will return it to the garage’s Lost and Found Department.

8. My daughter had informed me that the bus didn’t show up for this afternoon’s dismissal. Why did this happen? Who do I call? The assigned MBTA driver for the supplemental bus route called in sick. When this happens, the MBTA Supervisor cannot always remove a driver from another route to deploy him to the supplemental bus route. Ms. Webb will call the MBTA to file a complaint that the supplemental bus service wasn’t provided during our school dismissal. Parents are also encouraged to file an MBTA complaint online or by telephone.

9. My son missed his after school supplemental bus. He tried to run to catch up with the bus, but it was too late. How long will the bus wait for the students? The departure times for the buses are listed on the Supplemental Bus Schedule. Students have a sufficient amount of time to gather their coats and textbooks from their lockers, and leave the building to walk to their buses. Students should never run after a bus. This is very dangerous!

10. My child was tardy this morning but it wasn’t her fault. A family situation caused my child to be late for school. How can I get this tardy excused? You will need to email or call Ms. Webb to explain your child’s situation. Depending on the circumstances, Ms. Webb will inform you if the tardy will or will not be excused.

11. My daughter’s OneCard isn’t working. What should she do? Your daughter will need to bring the OneCard to Ms. Webb’s Office, Room 345. She will give your daughter a new card free of charge.

12. My son bent his OneCard and punched a hole in it. Now, it doesn’t work. Will he be able to get a new one? Your child will be able to purchase a new OneCard for $20 from Ms. Webb. Students must not: bend, punch holes or store their OneCards next to their cell phones. These types of actions will deactivate the card.

13. Will the OneCard only work on the MBTA Bus? No, your child will be able to use the OneCard on the train, trolley and the commuter rail.

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14. My daughter participates in after school sports. Will she be able to use the OneCard to go home or will she need to pay the regular T-fare? She will be able to use the OneCard during after school hours.

15. My son goes to work after school. Will he be able to use the OneCard to go to work and to come home or will he need to pay the regular T-fare? He will be able to use the OneCard during after school hours.

MBTA LOST & FOUND TELEPHONE NUMBERS

GARAGE

Monday-Friday 9:00 AM - 4:00 PM

Arborway Garage, Area #122: (617) 222-2399 Route Nos. 21, 28, 32, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38

Cabot Garage, Area #123/Albany Garage, Area #123: (617) 222-5202 Route Nos. 8, 9, 19, 22, 57, 57A

Southampton Garage, Area #138: (617) 222-2432 Route Nos. 28 and 39 COMMUTER RAIL

Monday-Friday 7:00 AM - 7:00 PM

North Station: (617) 222-3600 South Station: (617) 222-8120 SUBWAY

Monday-Friday 9:00 AM - 4:00 PM

Orange Line: (617) 222-5403 Green Line: (617) 222-5220/5221 Red Line: (617) 222-5321 Blue Line: (617) 222-5533 Silver Line: (617) 222-2432

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