Stop The Bus Fuss

Free buses for school children and students makes sense.

The Government’s policy of cutting funding for school buses is not only mean, it’s counterproductive to its education policy, impacting productivity and adding to climate pollution.

Fact: The cost of living continues to rise and lower income families are struggling to make ends meet.

Fact: The Government has stopped making bus travel free for school children.

Fact: The Government has instigated a truancy policy - they want all kids to be in school.

Conclusion: removing free bus travel for children flies in the face of making sure that every child can get to school every day.

Take what’s happening in our rural areas.

Fact: 21 school bus rural routes have been terminated by the Ministry of Education.

Fact: Our economy is driven by the rural sector.

Fact: Increased productivity increases our standard of living.

Fact: Farming parents who are now having to drive their children long distances to school reduces their time on the farm with consequent loss of productivity.

Conclusion: The government needs to do a cost benefit analysis of cutting rural bus routes vs productive time on the farm.

Now let’s take a look at what’s happening in our cities.

Fact: We have increasing traffic congestion.

Fact: Traffic slows to a crawl with thousands of parent/caregiver cars ferrying children and students to and from school.

Fact: More children riding to school in buses would reduce road congestion.

Conclusion: Adults sitting in traffic jams are not adding to national productivity.

Then there’s the climate change issue.

Fact: 30 cars ferrying 30 children to school is adding more to pollution and our climate change problems than 30 children travelling to school and back home in a bus.

Conclusion: Free bus travel for school children and students makes sense.

Making it more difficult for kids to get to school- doesn’t.

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