Students riding the bus should arrive at the bus stop 5-7 minutes before the scheduled bus stop time, allowing for slight variances in clocks. 

In the mornings, the bus will not leave a stop before the scheduled time, but once it arrives at the stop, it will not wait beyond the scheduled stop time.

Students will be picked up and dropped off at regularly designated stops only. In the afternoons, buses will remain at the school 5 minutes after the bell for students to board, so students should proceed immediately to their scheduled bus.

Drivers are instructed not to stop or open the bus door for late students due to safety concerns.

The Mesquite ISD Transportation Department requests parental cooperation in its efforts to carry out the intentions of the school bus safety guidelines and rules of behavior. The responsibility for student supervision by the school district shall begin when the student boards the bus in the morning and is retained until the child leaves the bus at the end of the day. Riding the school bus is a privilege, not a right, and the privilege may be revoked for safety and/or discipline reasons. Bus students are to remain on campus after being transported to school. Any student who leaves the grounds without authorization after arriving on campus may not return to campus to ride a bus home.

Parents are urged to discuss the rules with their children to ensure a safe and pleasant ride to and from school, as well as during extra-curricular trips:

• The bus driver has authority on the bus and over the students who are transported.
• The bus driver is very focused on road traffic, and it is essential that each student fully cooperates with the driver for the safety of all concerned.
• Cell phone use by students is prohibited on school buses.
• Students should remain well back from the roadway while awaiting the arrival of the bus. 
• Students are asked not to enter a bus when a driver is not in the vehicle.
• Students should board a bus in an orderly fashion, go directly to a seat and remain seated until the destination is reached.
• The driver has the authority to assign seats on the bus.
• The same rules of conduct that apply in the classroom are in effect on buses and at bus stops.
• Students should keep hands, arms, head and other objects inside the bus at all times.

All personal belongings such as backpacks, athletic equipment, books, musical instruments and the like must be kept from the aisles. Skateboards, roller skates, roller blades or any vehicle of this type are strictly prohibited from the bus.

The transportation of students' equipment (class projects, books, band instruments, etc.) is provided on a space-available basis after all students have been seated. Such equipment may be transported if it is securely held by the student for the entire duration of the trip. Items too large to be held by the student may be transported if they do not interfere with the availability of seating for other students and do not interfere with the safety of students or bus operation.

Transportation is available for students who live two miles or more from their assigned school. All students who are eligible to ride a bus will be assigned a bus route and stop based on the student’s legal residence. Students are limited to riding only the school bus that serves their legal residence and will not be allowed to ride a different bus or get off the bus at a different stop than the one assigned.

Mesquite ISD has a mapping program that is used for transportation management and routing. This software also helps the district determine transportation eligibility as it is capable of accurately determining the home-to-school distance for each student in the district. Transportation services are not provided to students who choose to transfer from the assigned school.