In a desperate bid to get to school, thousands of Eastern Cape pupils are risking their lives travelling in overloaded and unroadworthy scholar transport vehicles.
A pilot project launched by the department this year provides more danger than benefit for pupils as bus and taxi drivers break the law with impunity.
A Daily Dispatch investigation has revealed how the department hired old and unroadworthy buses to ferry pupils.
For the past two months, Grade R pupils as young as four have been squeezed in to make space for more. Up to four pupils sit cramped on the front seats of the taxis and buses, while other pupils sit on laps and many remain standing during the bumpy rides to school.
More than 40 pupils were loaded into one 14-seater minibus taxi. A 32-seater loaded at least 58 pupils while 65-seater buses were packed with high school pupils.
Last week on Tuesday when the Dispatch visited Reeston in East London, pupils from Nkangeleko Intermediate School were late for school when their bus broke down.
In Tshabo village two weeks ago, two pupils from Nowawe Senior Secondary School were injured when they tried to jump off a bus as it rolled backwards due to a failure in the gear links and brakes.
Angry parents stopped the bus from operating at the school again.
A parent, Nophelo Mputi, who takes her children to Embekweni Primary School outside Mdantsane said: “Our young children are left stranded here without transport sometimes, and when the transport is available the vehicles are overloaded. This project is just an accident waiting to happen because these drivers overload and drive fast on appalling roads. When we complained to the principal he said we should be grateful, even for the overloading.”
When the Dispatch confronted some of the drivers about the overloading they said the department had only paid them for a few pupils while the demand was enormous.
One of the drivers, who asked to remain anonymous, hired in Nxarhuni, said: “The route I am responsible for has been approved, which means all the pupils on that route should be transported. There are 123 pupils from that village but the department has only paid for 49, yet I was told to only transport that number.”
He said he ended up overloading because “I can’t leave the other children behind”.
School governing body member at Nxarhuni Primary School Mthomasebe Bacela said: “We have 102 pupils who need scholar transport but only 42 have been paid for. Some have to walk, while parents who can afford to pay for the transport, resort to that.”
A parent, Mvuselelo Mfazwe, said parents were furious about the chaos.
“The government said this was only for three months but what if something happens to these pupils during that period? They claimed to be waiting for the next financial year but we all know that it takes time for the funds to become available.
“These children could still wait for months before they get transport. Winter is approaching. They need to make a plan fast.”
Ngwenyathi Senior Secondary School principal Kungeka Ntshanga said the department of transport had shifted the blame to the education department, saying the officials had submitted the wrong figures.
Transport spokesman Ncedo Kumbaca, however, lambasted parents for “allowing” their children to be crammed into the vehicles, and school principals for not reporting the “infringement”.
He said: “It cannot be that parents allow their children to be so cramped without reporting it to the department. At the same time, it cannot be that principals allow this to happen and sign the proof of delivery as if all was well without reporting this infringement. These are all parts of the monitoring mechanisms of this programme.”
He said they had catered for the numbers provided by the education department.
After the Dispatch sent questions to Kumbaca last week, he said traffic officers were dispatched to some of the affected schools.
Asked what would happen until the new contract is implemented on April 13, Kumbaca said the decision was for the education department to make based on their list of priorities.
Education spokesman Mali Mtima said the demand for transport was higher than the available budget.
The department did not respond to other questions sent on Thursday.
Kumbaca said residents could report challenges on the toll-free number 0800644-644 as traffic officers could not be in every school. —
Video: Going to school a risky ride
A pilot project launched by the department this year provides more danger than benefit for pupils as bus and taxi drivers break the law with impunity.
A Daily Dispatch investigation has revealed how the department hired old and unroadworthy buses to ferry pupils.
For the past two months, Grade R pupils as young as four have been squeezed in to make space for more. Up to four pupils sit cramped on the front seats of the taxis and buses, while other pupils sit on laps and many remain standing during the bumpy rides to school.
More than 40 pupils were loaded into one 14-seater minibus taxi. A 32-seater loaded at least 58 pupils while 65-seater buses were packed with high school pupils.
Last week on Tuesday when the Dispatch visited Reeston in East London, pupils from Nkangeleko Intermediate School were late for school when their bus broke down.
In Tshabo village two weeks ago, two pupils from Nowawe Senior Secondary School were injured when they tried to jump off a bus as it rolled backwards due to a failure in the gear links and brakes.
Angry parents stopped the bus from operating at the school again.
A parent, Nophelo Mputi, who takes her children to Embekweni Primary School outside Mdantsane said: “Our young children are left stranded here without transport sometimes, and when the transport is available the vehicles are overloaded. This project is just an accident waiting to happen because these drivers overload and drive fast on appalling roads. When we complained to the principal he said we should be grateful, even for the overloading.”
When the Dispatch confronted some of the drivers about the overloading they said the department had only paid them for a few pupils while the demand was enormous.
One of the drivers, who asked to remain anonymous, hired in Nxarhuni, said: “The route I am responsible for has been approved, which means all the pupils on that route should be transported. There are 123 pupils from that village but the department has only paid for 49, yet I was told to only transport that number.”
He said he ended up overloading because “I can’t leave the other children behind”.
School governing body member at Nxarhuni Primary School Mthomasebe Bacela said: “We have 102 pupils who need scholar transport but only 42 have been paid for. Some have to walk, while parents who can afford to pay for the transport, resort to that.”
A parent, Mvuselelo Mfazwe, said parents were furious about the chaos.
“The government said this was only for three months but what if something happens to these pupils during that period? They claimed to be waiting for the next financial year but we all know that it takes time for the funds to become available.
“These children could still wait for months before they get transport. Winter is approaching. They need to make a plan fast.”
Ngwenyathi Senior Secondary School principal Kungeka Ntshanga said the department of transport had shifted the blame to the education department, saying the officials had submitted the wrong figures.
Transport spokesman Ncedo Kumbaca, however, lambasted parents for “allowing” their children to be crammed into the vehicles, and school principals for not reporting the “infringement”.
He said: “It cannot be that parents allow their children to be so cramped without reporting it to the department. At the same time, it cannot be that principals allow this to happen and sign the proof of delivery as if all was well without reporting this infringement. These are all parts of the monitoring mechanisms of this programme.”
He said they had catered for the numbers provided by the education department.
After the Dispatch sent questions to Kumbaca last week, he said traffic officers were dispatched to some of the affected schools.
Asked what would happen until the new contract is implemented on April 13, Kumbaca said the decision was for the education department to make based on their list of priorities.
Education spokesman Mali Mtima said the demand for transport was higher than the available budget.
The department did not respond to other questions sent on Thursday.
Kumbaca said residents could report challenges on the toll-free number 0800644-644 as traffic officers could not be in every school. —
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