OTTAWA — Students who normally use the transit system to get to school were given a more traditional ride today: the yellow school bus.

Due to a transit workers strike that would have left many children stranded, the local school boards began providing school bus service that replicates the transit system’s dedicated school routes.

The transit bus numbers that students normally look for were clearly posted on the yellow buses.

School board officials negotiated with the striking transit union to ensure that there would be no picketing at schools or bus stops.

At one local high school, more than a third of students normally use the transit system, OC Transpo.