Hundreds of kindergarten students took their first bus ride on Wednesday.

The Regina Catholic and Public School Divisions hosted their third annual First Ride Program, which provides students with all they need to know on their first day.

“He’s starting kindergarten here in a couple of weeks and we want to make sure that he’s comfortable with the bus system and knows where to go, who the driver is and that they’re watching out for him and which bus to pick and how to be safe on the bus,” said Sherri Kerr, whose son Laird is starting school in two weeks.

School Division representatives say the program has been a success with more parents feeling comfortable about letting their kids ride the bus to school.

“It’s not just about bus safety, it’s about being safe on the sidewalk, being safe on the road, being safe getting off the sidewalk onto the road and onto the bus. We want to get all those messages across clearly,” said Elena Chase, Transportation Officer with the Regina Catholic School Division.

The first time riders were taught four simple rules for riding on the bus, they include: sit in your seat properly with your hands and feet out of the aisle, don’t throw anything out of the window, use your inside voice and be nice to your seat mate.

The riders were also taught about cross walk safety by the CAA School Safety Patrol and bike safety by the Saskatchewan Safety Council.

“They’re going to be excited about going to school and they’ve always had mom and dad there with them but when they start school, they might not always be around, there will be older kids to help them like CAA School Safety Patrollers, but even motorists might not be paying attention and kids aren’t paying attention, so it’s really important to teach them that they need to be careful on the road,” said Madelaine Michelle, Communications Coordinator with CAA Saskatchewan.

Laird Kerr feels like he’s ready after today’s course, “[I learned about] bike safety and bus safety,” said the kindergarten student.

The kids head to school starting on Tuesday, September 3.