Abu Dhabi: A week after the Department of Transport (DoT) announced new safety codes for school buses in Abu Dhabi, transport providers said parents may have to bear the cost of the overhaul.
“We are not looking for unreasonable profit. But if we do not charge at least Dh500 instead of the current Dh300 a month, we will be out of business,” said Mohammad Ali, who runs White Way General Transport that caters to four Abu Dhabi private schools.
Bus owners say they will have to fork out around Dh15,000 on each bus to meet the safety regulations that include installing seven CCTV cameras, GPS and making provisions for emergency exits, fire extinguishers, electronic stop signs, seat belts, space between seats etc.
heavy expenditure
For White Way, which operates 32 school buses, it would mean an expenditure of Dh480,000. That excludes costs involved in hiring female supervisors for children up to the age of 11 and recruiting conductors and drivers above the age of 25 and training them to be conversant in English or Arabic.
Operators have until September to ensure that at least half of their fleet met the safety regulations. The remaining buses must comply by September 2014.
Starting May 1, bus owners will need a DoT permit to operate.
School Transport Services (STS), UAE’s biggest private school bus companies also hinted at a hike. “The increase will be minimal. But first we will have to work out the cost,” M.L Augustine, Managing Director of STS, told XPRESS.
STS operates 200 buses in Abu Dhabi and caters to six private schools in the emirate. Augustine said modification costs will vary depending on the size of the bus. “The GPS system for each bus would alone cost Dh3,000. We will have to also factor its maintenance cost,” said Augustine.
DoT requires school buses to install seven CCTVs — four outside and three inside. A bus operator said the seven cameras would cost a minimum of Dh7,000.
Under the new safety codes, all folding seats will have to be removed. Bus operators said reducing the seating capacity of 34-seat buses to 27 will also impact their earnings.
They also fear losing business during school holidays.
“During the summer break, we lend our buses to various offices. But once the buses are painted yellow with the name of the school on both sides, we won’t be able to use them for other purposes,” said a transport operator.
Safety at a price
Parents said they are worried the cost of revamping school buses will be passed on to them.
According to DoT survey, 72 per cent private school students use school buses. For public students the figure is 44 per cent. “It worries me that my three-year-old child travels in a big bus without seat belts. I want to see him buckled alirght, but I am not prepared to pay for it as it’s a basic safety feature that the bus should have anyways,” said an Indian mother whose child studies at Abu Dhabi Indian High School.
Jasmine Taylor, a British parent, said she is already paying a bus fee of Dh500 each for her two kids.
“These are safety standards schools are expected to provide. Their cost should not be passed on to parents. I hope education authorities will introduce a cap on bus fee hikes,” said Taylor.
Parents are pinning their hopes on the Abu Dhabi Education Council which said it would not allow arbitrary hikes by service providers, but did not specify if they will put a cap on increases.
Meanwhile, Clive Pierrepont, Director of Communications at Taaleem, the second biggest private education provider, said extra costs will have to be borne by parents and stakeholders. “This is just a fact of life. However, any measure that significantly increases the safety and security of our school children is worth the price.
“It is encouraging to see authorities taking monitoring safety of school buses very seriously and making operators and owners accountable for the protection of students,” said Pierrepont.
Cost of running a DoT specified school buses
GPS Installation: Dh3,000 (plus monthly data services) (one time)
Close Circuit cameras: Dh4000 each (Seven cameras required) (one time)
Painting, seat modification, fire extinguishers, emergency exits etc: Dh6,000 (one time)
Driver’s salary: Dh2,500 – 3,000 (monthly)
Conductor’s salary: Dh2,000 – 2,500 (monthly)
Fuel: Dh2,500 (monthly)
General maintenance: Dh1000 (monthly)
Monthly Bank loans: Dh5,000 – Dh6,000
(as provided by bus operators)
