Saudi students could lose school bus service for breaking safety rules

Dubai: Students in Saudi Arabia could be temporarily barred from school transport, or lose access to the service for the entire academic year, if they breach rules governing safety and behaviour on school buses, the Ministry of Education has said.

The warning comes as education departments across the kingdom’s regions and governorates begin accepting applications for school transport for the new academic year through the Noor electronic system.

Registration is open to male and female students across all three stages of general education, according to Arabic daily Okaz.

The service carries an annual fee of SR200, although the ministry has exempted children from families receiving social security benefits, as well as students with disabilities.

With the new academic year beginning tomorrow Sunday, the ministry has also issued a detailed set of rules intended to protect pupils travelling to and from school.

Students must wait for buses in designated areas, board and leave in an orderly manner, remain in their assigned seats and wear seatbelts. They must follow the driver's instructions and are prohibited from extending their heads, hands or other parts of their bodies through windows or doors.

Dangerous items are also prohibited on board.

The ministry said students must keep buses clean and respect their facilities and other passengers' property. They should immediately alert the driver if they board the wrong bus or if their designated stop is missed.

Rules for getting off the bus

Students have also been warned against crossing directly in front of a school bus after getting off.

They should first make sure the vehicle has come to a complete stop before leaving, then wait until it has moved away and check that the road is clear before crossing.

In an emergency or accident, pupils should follow the driver's instructions, use emergency exits where necessary and evacuate calmly and in an orderly manner.

Parents, meanwhile, are not permitted to board school buses. Complaints should instead be submitted to the school's transport supervisor or through the toll-free service provided by the Educational Transportation Development Company.

Parents should also not interfere with routes determined by the school transport operator, the ministry said.

Students who breach the rules could be suspended from the transport service temporarily or for the remainder of the academic year. In such cases, the SR200 registration fee will not be refunded.