Child Rides

How to Ride

• Child must be 3+ to ride alone on the trolley.

• Parent or legal guardian must contact Southern Iowa Trolley Dispatch to verify there is transportation available in the town and during the times needed.

• If transportation is available, parent or legal guardian must fill out the 2023-2024 Child Ridership Form completely for each child and email, fax, or send to the office prior to the child’s first ride. We cannot transport if form is not filled out completely and on file in dispatch unless other arrangements have been made with dispatch.

• Ticket, pass, or fare must be paid prior to the ride or given to the driver upon arrival unless other arrangements have been made with dispatch.

Policy and Procedures

In a concerted effort with parents to provide safe, reliable and affordable transportation, the Southern Iowa Trolley has established the following policies and procedures.

Disruptive Behavior
If a child becomes disruptive, refuses to stay seated, uses profanity, is involved in fighting, or any other problem that may interfere with the driver’s ability to drive, the following policy’s will be enforced:

1st offense - The driver will fill out a behavior warning report. The child's parent/guardian will receive a phone call that a behavior problem exists, and requires their attention. Parent/guardian will be notified by the Safety & Training Manager or Transit Director and and depending on severity, transportation may be suspended for one week or longer.

2nd offense – The driver will fill out behavior warning report. Parent/guardian will be notified by the Safety & Training Manager or Transit Director and transportation will be suspended for two weeks or longer.

3rd offense – The driver will fill out behavior warning report. Parent/guardian will be notified by the Safety & Training Manager or Transit Director. Transportation will be suspended for three weeks and may be suspended for the remainder of the school year.

Change Notification
Parents/legal guardians must notify S.I.T. of changes in scheduled pick up or drop off addresses. If S.I.T. has not been notified of the change and the driver goes to the scheduled place of pick up or drop off, an additional fare will be charged. Please notify S.I.T. as soon as possible of any changes. If change is permanent, a new ridership form must be submitted.

Food and Drink
In an effort to keep the Trolley clean, food and/or drinks are NOT allowed. If the child is taking treats to school please make sure they are in an enclosed container in their backpacks or given to the driver to keep until the child reaches their destination.

Toys
For the safety of the children all toys should be placed in backpacks or given to the driver until the child’s final destination.

Lost Items
Drivers walk through the vehicle at the end of each route. If your child is missing an item please contact Southern Iowa Trolley as soon as possible. Any items left over at Christmas break and the end of the school year is given to charity. A lost and found box is located at the S.I.T. office.

Children under 3 years
Children less than three years of age MUST be accompanied by an adult and must be in a car seat or other approved safety securement provided by the family or contracting organization.

Safety Securements
All passengers must stay seated and wear seat belts/safety restraint (unless medical release has been given in writing by a physician) at all times while on board the vehicle. Passengers, who refuse to fasten seatbelts or unfasten seatbelt while the Trolley is moving, will be written up. See Disruptive Behavior.

Passenger Timeliness
Children should be dressed and ready to go when the Trolley arrives. S.I.T. will not wait any longer than two (2) minutes at one location for your child to come out of the door. If your child misses the Trolley, S.I.T. will return to pick up your child, after the other passengers have been delivered to their destination in order to prevent everyone from being late. S.I.T. reserves the right to charge an additional fare for return pickups. Transportation may be suspended if 3 No Call, No Shows occur. Transportation will not resume until the office has been discussed the situation with the parent or guardian.

S.I.T. Timeliness
Pickup and delivery time may vary fifteen (15) – thirty (30) minutes due to riders being added or removed, road conditions, trains across tracks, or unforeseen problems such as replacement driver or vehicle problems.

School Delays
S.I.T. will operate at the delayed time. If there is a change in pickup location, you must contact us with new pickup location.

School Cancelled
If school cancels, S.I.T. will not provide any child transportation.

Early Outs
If schools are released early, you must contact dispatch if drop off location is changed.

Town-to-Town
Example: Greenfield to Creston, if Nodaway Valley delays two hours, those children riding to Creston will be on a two hour delay even if Creston is not on a delay. Please contact dispatch if your child will not be riding.

Release of Child
Unless a parent/legal guardian has signed the parental release section, an adult/authorized person must be visible to the driver when children are delivered or the child will not be allowed to disembark the vehicle. If an adult/authorized person is not visible by the driver, the child will remain on the vehicle until the end of the route. S.I.T. dispatch will make every attempt to contact the parent/legal guardian or one of the people authorized to make changes. Additional charges may be applied at the discretion of the Transit Director to drop child off at alternate destination or if returning to the scheduled destination.