Register to Ride – Bus Information
NOTICE: Most 2025-2026 Transportation Forms are now open!
Transportation forms and payments are accessed online through your PowerSchool Parent Portal once your child is registered (or pre-registered) at a Pembina Hills school.
- Early Learning students must call 780.674.8545 to determine if busing is available.
Questions about Transportation? Contact the Transportation Office at troffice@pembinahills.ca or call 780.674.8510.
HOW TO APPLY FOR BUSING
- Log in to your PowerSchool Parent Portal Account.
- Don’t have a PowerSchool Parent Portal Account yet?
Families who are brand new to Pembina Hills will receive an email with login instructions for their PowerSchool Parent Portal account after their child’s New Student Registration Form has been approved. See our Student Registration page for school registration information. - If you are having trouble logging into your PowerSchool Parent Portal account, please contact your school office.
- Don’t have a PowerSchool Parent Portal Account yet?
- Click on Payments, Consent & Transp Forms in the main menu on the left-side of the screen. This will open a new internet browser tab for the Student Quick Pay website.
- Select your child’s name from the top menu.
- Select the appropriate year Transportation Forms tab on the lower half of the screen.
- Select, complete and submit the desired form. Form descriptions are further down this page.
If you do not see the form you need, please contact our Transportation Department.
| Service | 2025-2026 Fees Per student, per year | 2025-2026 Application Intake Status | 2024-2025 Fees Per student, per year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rural students attending Designated School | No cost | OPEN | No cost |
| Students attending Requested School | $460 ECS: $230 | OPEN | $460 ECS: $230 |
| Students attending School of Choice | No cost | OPEN | No cost |
| In-Town Kindergarten to Grade 6 students who live MORE than 1km from their school *Distance criteria for funding eligibility changing to 1.6km starting in 2026-2027* | No cost | CLOSED *Opens May 1 | No cost |
| In-Town Kindergarten to Grade 6 students who live LESS than 1km from their school* *Distance criteria for funding eligibility changing to 1.6km starting in 2026-2027* | Gr. 1-6: $200 ECS: $100 | CLOSED *Opens June 1 | Gr. 1-6: $100 ECS: $50 |
| In-Town Grades 7 to 12 students who live MORE than 2km from their school | No cost | CLOSED *Opens May 1 | No cost |
| In-Town Grades 7 to 12 students who live LESS than 2km from their school* | $200 | CLOSED *Opens August 15 | $100 |
| Alternate site requests | $50 | CLOSED *Opens August 15 | $50 |
Students attending Designated School
NEW rural students must register for busing even if they have a sibling who already rides the bus.
CURRENT rural students riding the bus to their Designated School only need to complete a Rural Student Transportation Form if the student’s address changes and they need to be picked up at a new rural location.
Students wanting Requested School Transportation – see the Requested School/School of Choice Transportation section.
To complete the Rural Student Transportation Form, follow the instructions to access Transportation Forms in the How to register/apply for busing section.
NOTICE: In-Town Transportation applications for 2025-2026 will be available May 1.
Students who live in the towns of Barrhead, Swan Hills and Westlock may apply for busing to school.
The following students are eligible for provincial funding in 2025-2026 and can access busing at no cost:
- ECS to Grade 6 students who live 1km or more from their designated school
- Important Note: The distance criteria to be eligible for funding is changing to 1.6km. A fee will apply to students living less than 1.6km from school starting in 2026-2027.
- Grades 7 to 12 students who live 2km or more from their designated school
The annual fee for riding the in-town bus for students who do not meet the above criteria (unfunded students):
- ECS: $50 per student, per year for 2024-2025
- $100 per student, per year starting in 2025-2026
- Grades 1-12: $100 per student, per year
- $200 per student, per year starting in 2025-2026
Seats are subject to availability. In the event of a discrepancy, final distance calculations by Transportation software will prevail.
Students must be approved to attend a Requested School or School of Choice (Form 5-01A) before applying for transportation. See the Student Registration page for more information.
Transportation may be available for students attending a Requested School or School of Choice (French Immersion or denominational programming) who have a current approved Requested School/School of Choice Application Form (5-01A), a completed Requested School/School of Choice Transportation Application Form (5-01B) and have paid the Requested School Transportation Fee of $460 (per student, per year), by August 15 before the school year for which they are applying, if applicable.
Transportation will be provided at no cost
- for students attending a Requested School based on the following exemptions and conditions
- Students in need of a Special Education program, as directed by Pembina Hills Student Services
- Students in the Neerlandia attendance area wanting access to regular education programming in Barrhead
- for students attending a School of Choice
- French Immersion students where no French Immersion is offered
- Students outside of the Neerlandia attendance area wanting to attend the Neerlandia Public Christian Education program (parent transportation required to an existing Neerlandia bus stop or to the Neerlandia Express Bus)
Parents/guardians can also choose to transport their child/ren to their Requested School or School of Choice.
Transportation seats are assigned on a first-come, first-served basis, will only be considered on existing routes and priority will be given to students attending their Designated School. The availability of space will be reviewed annually.
Note: Pembina Hills provides bus service for rural students to one bus stop location. Parents may apply for service to an additional stop location under certain criteria. See the Alternate Site Request section for more details.
See the Administrative Procedure 50-01 Requesting School Other Than Designated School for more information.
To apply for Requested School/School of Choice Transportation
Access the Requested School/School of Choice Transportation Application Form (5-01B) through the PowerSchool Parent Portal. Instructions are listed at the top of this page.
Requested School/School of Choice Transportation Applications (5-01B) must be submitted annually.
Updated 2024-May-29
When a parent/guardian would like any alternate or unusual transportation arrangements, they must submit an Alternate Site Request. All alternate site requests must be applied for annually.
- Pembina Hills provides bus service for rural students to one bus stop location. Parents may apply for service to an additional stop location (alternate site) under certain criteria.
- The alternate site is located along an existing route and does not require any route deviations.
- The bus is not more than 95% full.
- The parents communicate with the bus driver regarding a schedule for when the alternate site will be used.
- Alternate sites will not be granted for one-time use situations such as birthday parties, sleepovers, etc.
- The cost is $50 per student per year.
When to use the Alternate Site Request Form
- Regular drop off or pick up at a location other than the student’s residence (or usual point of pick up or drop off).
- Riding a different school bus morning and afternoon.
- Needing to be registered on more than one bus.
Should the alternate site request require payment for in-town, the alternate site fee will be waived.
Online payments are accepted by credit card (VISA, Mastercard, Discover) or VISA Debit.
If you do not wish to pay online, you can still submit the form online. Payments can be made via cash, cheque (payable to Pembina Hills School Division), credit card or debit card at
- Pembina Hills Transportation Offices
- Barrhead: 5610 – 49 Street
- Westlock: 10320 – 107 Street
- Pembina Hills Division Office at 5310 – 49 Street, Barrhead.