Parents prefer safer school buses to vans

Say enhanced safety in school buses beats affordability and speed of pool cars

WITH more safety measures being introduced in school buses, parents are increasingly opting for them over cheaper and faster methods of transportation like pool cars or vans.


Parents say that even though buses are now equipped with fire extinguishers and first aid boxes, they still have to send their children by car pool services, as buses don't ply in the narrow lanes of the city. pic/Aul Kamble

Almost all the city schools have been providing bus services for a long time now, but many parents complain that they are forced to opt for the 'cheaper-but-unsafe' pool cars as the giant buses cannot enter narrow lanes and pick up their wards from there. The increased safety in school buses has, however, tilted the scales in their favour.

Sayli Karekar, a parent from Andheri (East), said, "If school buses plied in my area, I would have never hired a pool car to begin with. There is no doubt that school buses are safer and the new safety measures, which have been made compulsory by the transport department, have only boosted their safe image."

The new buses have a lady attendant in each vehicle and parents have to pay Rs 800 per month for their child to travel in them, compared to the Rs 400 they would have to fork out for a pool car or van.

Anil Kolekar, a resident of Oshiwara, said, "For me, the safety of my child is the first priority and the school buses are undoubtedly safer than pool cars. I don't mind paying a little extra for some peace of mind."

Accountability
Another factor which is pushing parents to opt for school buses is the fact that the school will be accountable for the child reaching home late, which is not the case with regular pool cars or vans, with the yellow coloured 'legal' vans being the only notable exception.

Some parents said that sending their children by school buses helps them interact more with their peers. Sanjay Malhotra, a Versova resident, said, "My child interacts with other students in his school bus and makes new friends. This would not have been possible in a van because there are fewer students."

For some, however, the fact that vans make their wards reach school faster and pick them up from their doorstep is enough to make them stick to this mode of transportation. Ashok Kumar Das from Andheri said, "I'd still prefer sending my child by a van as it makes him reach school faster unlike the buses."

Anil Garg, chairman, School Bus Owners' Association, said, "Parents will obviously prefer buses as they know how unsafe their children would be in a van. There are still many vans that ferry students illegally and the traffic department should make a note of that."

The Other Side
Shankar Amante, founder, Shri Swami Samartha Van Owners' Association, which runs 250 vans in the Dahisar-Bandra belt, said, "Our vans have been licensed to ferry students and are as safe as schools buses. Moreover, we provide door-to-door services, which buses don't, and thus parents prefer vans."

1,200
The number of school vans in the city

It's time for schools and colleges across the city to reopen for the new academic session. Keeping this in mind, MiD DAY will be bringing you a series of reports on significant issues related to the sphere of education.

The stories will range from safety guidelines for school buses to the contentious issue of fee hikes.

Also on the agenda will be the upcoming SSC results and the online admission procedures for educational institutions in the city. Remember, knowledge is power.