Despite the sizable literature on school transportation, little information exists about the social and intellectual implications of long bus rides for students and families or the possible negative consequences of school bus rides. This study examined the nature and experience of riding the school bus in rural as compared to suburban locales in five states. A 38-item questionnaire was completed by 1,194 elementary school principals in Arkansas, Georgia, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, and Washington. Each of the following findings was found in at least four of the five states: rural elementary schools were more likely than suburban elementary schools to have longest rides of 30 minutes or more, to have attendance areas greater than 10 square miles, to have bus routes with rougher rides, to be located in a district without a full-time bus supervisor, and to include middle-school or high school students on the same bus runs as elementary students. In three states, rural principals were more likely than suburban principals to associate length of ride with reduced parental involvement, and in all states, principals in schools with longest rides of 60 minutes or more thought that long rides negatively influenced parental involvement. Many other rural-suburban differences were statistically significant in one to three states. Results provide empirical confirmation of the comparatively adverse conditions contributing to rural parents' and communities' concerns about long bus rides. (Contains 37 references and the survey questionnaire.) (SV)