Charter School Transportation Policy
Any school district boundary within ten (10) miles of Charter Arts’ front door obligates a sending district to transport all district students to Charter Arts. The following school districts will provide bus transportation to Charter Arts:
Allentown City SD
Bethlehem Area SD
Catasauqua Area SD
East Penn SD
Easton Area SD
Nazareth Area SD
Northampton Area SD
Palisades SD
Parkland SD
Quakertown SD
Salisbury Township SD
Saucon Valley SD
Southern Lehigh SD
Whitehall/Coplay SD
Wilson Are SD
Act 372 Bus Transportation Request Forms for 2022-2023:
All students that require busing arrangements from one of our busing school districts must complete an Act 372 Bus Transportation Request each school year. We must receive these forms no later than the last day of June prior to the start of the following school year.
Mail the form to Charter Arts Transportation Office, 321 East 3rd Street, Bethlehem PA 18015 or send a clear and legible image (scanned or photographed) to transportation@charterarts.org.
Quakertown (Levy Bus) – If you are a resident of the Quakertown Community School District you may register for busing through Levy Bus Company at https://www.levybus.com. Please click on the yellow INFOSNAP button to complete transportation registration.
Palmeri Group Bus Transportation
Families who reside in the following districts are eligible for bus transportation to school through the Palmeri Group, a privately owned transportation company that provides bus transportation to many schools in and around these communities:
Bangor Area School District
East Stroudsburg Area School District
Jim Thorpe Area School District
Lehighton Area School District
North Pocono School District
Pen Argyl Area School District
Pleasant Valley School District
Pocono Mountain School District
Stroudsburg Area School District
Charter Arts executes the contract for this service wherein the parent/guardian(s) assumes financial responsibility for the term of one school year. You may review the Palmeri Contract and further information here. For more information, please contact the Transportation Coordinator at transportation@charterarts.org.
Carpool
Families who reside outside any of the above districts must provide transportation to and from Charter Arts each day. If you wish to arrange a carpool with other Charter Arts families, please complete the Carpool Permission Form.
This form permits us to include your contact information on the current school year’s Live Carpool Document which is shared with other families who are interested in carpooling. Please note, it is up to the families to make carpool arrangements. There is no obligation to be a carpool driver by joining the carpool list.
Currently and historically, we have families carpooling from the following counties:
Berks County
Bucks County
Carbon County
Lehigh County
Monroe County
Montgomery County
Northampton County
Schuylkill County
Student Drop Off and Pick Up Locations
PLEASE NOTE NEW INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE 2022-2023 SCHOOL YEAR: The lot next to the school and the Southside 313 restaurant will be under construction throughout the 22-23 school year increasing the traffic volume on Columbia St. and Taylor St. All buses will now drop off and pick up students on Polk St. and 1st St.
STUDENTS MAY NOT BE DROPPED OFF OR PICKED UP ON COLUMBIA STREET OR TAYLOR STREET UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES. PLEASE REVIEW THE MAP BELOW.
● Student Pick Up and Drop Off: Students can only be dropped off or picked up in the parking lot across from the Steel Ice Rink on 1st Street. Enforcement of this rule will be absolute in compliance with the City of Bethlehem. Our surrounding businesses also have private lots that are not permitted for student drop-off or pick-up.
Weather-Related School Delays/Closings
Charter Arts relies on the sending school districts within a ten-mile radius of Charter Arts for the transportation needs of many of our students. These sending districts cannot always accommodate Charter Arts’ schedule during weather-related circumstances. It is important for students who rely on busing from their home district to pay close attention to that district’s weather delay or closing. All students should check WFMZ.com for Charter Arts’ weather delay or closing. It is important to check several times as Charter Arts’ closing status can change from a two-hour delay to closed if bad weather continues.
When a home school district closes early because of weather, they will contact Charter Arts. Charter Arts will make sure students get on the bus at the appropriate time. If Charter Arts closes before a sending school district, the sending district will be contacted to pick up their students early for transportation home.
If your sending school district has a delay and Charter Arts does not:
As Charter Arts students travel into Bethlehem from a nine-county region, weather delays and school closings are not always consistent. If your school district has a delay and we do not, please follow your district’s delay.
If Charter Arts has a delay and your sending school district does not:Below is a list of our sending school districts and their policy if they are on regular time and we have a delay.
| School | Policy |
|---|---|
| Allentown | Picks up at regular time not delayed time |
| Bethlehem | Picks up at regular time not delayed time |
| Catasauqua | Follows our delayed time |
| Easton | Picks up at regular time not delayed time |
| East Penn | Follows our delayed time |
| Nazareth | Follows our delayed time |
| Northampton | Follows our delayed time |
| Palisades | Picks up at regular time not delayed time |
| Parkland | Follows our delayed time, unless otherwise notified |
| Salisbury | Follows our delayed time, unless otherwise notified |
| Saucon Valley | Does not transport in AM, will transport in PM |
| Southern Lehigh | Picks up at regular time not delayed time |
| Whitehall | Follows our delayed time |
| Wilson | Picks up at regular time not delayed time |
Palmieri Bus out of the Pocono area will follow our delayed time, unless otherwise notified.
Charter Arts will have someone here at the school to allow the students to enter the school when the bus drops them off.
