Ras Al Khaimah: Private schools in Ras Al Khaimah say they are hard pressed to meet the cost of changing the colour of school buses to orange before the next academic year.
The RAK Traffic and Licensing Department ordered the private and public schools on May 11 to change the colour of the buses for safety reasons and to differentiate them from the vehicles used by companies to transport their workers.
Colonel Nasser Muradad, who heads the RAK Traffic and Licensing Department said that the decision is in the interest of students' safety.
He said that the disctintive colour scheme will help alert other drivers on the road to take necessary precautionary measures when they spot the school buses.
The new colour scheme will also help police patrols assist school buses on busy streets, he said.
However, the private schools say that their financial position does not allow them to incur such an extra expenditure now.
Under the circumstances, the schools said, unless the department shouldered a part of the expenses, they should be allowed to increase tuition fees from the next academic year.
Not consulted
School owners said the decision for the change of colour of the buses was taken by the emirate's Traffic and Licensing Department and the emirate's Educational Zone.
They wanted these two government agencies to bear a part of the cost.
They said the private schools had not been consulted before the decision was taken. The Educational Zone sent official notes to the schools to comply with the new decision, they said.
The school managements said it was unfair to force the schools to pay for the colour change of the buses unless the authorities granted them "automatic approval" to increase tuition fees.
They said the grace period granted till the beginning of the next academic year is not enough in view of the current financial difficulties faced by private schools.
Does the orange colour help you spot a school bus? As a motorist, do you take any precautions when driving by a bus full of students?
