Jake’s Tips For Taking the Bus to RHS

How do your kids get to school? My spoiled ones get a ride through a carpool. Even though I took three city buses to school and three city buses home from school each day (uphill both ways), it never even occurred to me to tell my girls to get their sleepy butts to the bus stop. Jake’s been taking the bus since day one and says it isn’t so bad. We asked him for his take and some tips and suggestions. Thanks Jake!!

My name is Jake R., and I am a freshman at Ridgewood High School. This year, I am taking the NJ Transit bus to and from school. I’ll be the first to tell you, taking the transit bus is NOT as scary or stressful as it seems. In fact, it’s quite relaxing and convenient. Here are five tips to make the ride go smoothly.

Have your money or ticket* ready! There are usually a few people waiting to get on at a bus stop, and you want to avoid any sort of hold up. The key is speed; try to minimize your transaction time with the bus driver. Exact change is not required, and the bus drivers are very quick in providing change when you use small bills.
Keep an eye out! You don’t want to miss your stop, so be aware of where you are or how far away you are from your destination. There is a button you can push to request a stop, but given some time, the driver usually knows who gets off at each stop.
Be early! Although on a schedule, the buses can sometimes be early. It is safe to be at your stop a few minutes ahead of the bus’ scheduled stop. The last thing you’d want is to miss the bus!
Bring earbuds! Personally, I love to listen to music on the bus ride. It is very relaxing, especially before and after school. It’s a great way to start and wind down the day.
Stay connected! All bus stop signs have a five-digit code you can text to a number (also on the sign) to get the estimated time of arrival for your bus. This comes in handy if the bus doesn’t arrive exactly at it’s scheduled time.

Hopefully these tips will help you have easy and relaxing trips to school on the NJ Transit bus!

*Ask your parents to buy you bus tickets at a discounted student rate by emailing bulksales@njtransit.com