No decision yet on school bus fares

JOHOR BARU: There has been no decision yet on whether school bus fares will be increased across the board, says the Malaysia School Bus Owner and Operator Association.

Its president Dr M. Muruga said those claiming that school bus fares would see a spike were “irresponsible” parties who were trying to create tension between school bus operators and parents.

“Even I found the reports claiming that some school bus operators are planning to charge parents up to RM300 a month as nonsense.

“Even though the price increase for spare parts and maintenance is true, school bus operators should not put everything on parents,” he said when contacted yesterday.

Muruga said negotiations with parents and schools would be one of the best solutions so that all parties would understand the problems facing school bus operators after the federal deregulation of fares for school buses in 2015.

He said negotiations between all parties involved had been the best formula in setting school bus fares for the past seven years.

He also said that even with the deregulation, the Land Public Transport Agency (Apad) still ensured that fares would not burden parents while allowing bus operators to make a living.

“We have been abiding by the laws and regulations set by the government since 2015, and there have been no issues until now,” he added.

Muruga, who is also Johor School Bus Driver and Operator Association chairman, said they had sent a proposal to the new government to help school bus drivers in the B40 group.

“We requested the government to introduce a ‘one ringgit for one litre of diesel’ (programme) for these drivers through a targeted subsidies scheme.

“The government can easily identify those who are eligible for this through Apad and the Road Transport Department (RTD) database,” he added.

He said the association also requested for financial aid to be given to bus drivers in November and December each year.

“Just like how the government helps fishermen during the monsoon season, we would also like to be aided with at least RM500 per month so that we would have something to put on our table before the school session starts again,” he added.

Pasir Gudang Parent-Teacher Association (PTA) chief Mahat Japar said using the excuse of a hike in prices of insurance and spare parts to increase fares was unreasonable.

“If that is the case, then they should have pleaded with the government through its agencies like RTD or Puspakom for help and not dump the burden on parents.

“We can still accept it if the price increase was only from RM50 to RM60, but if it doubles or triples, that is absurd,” he said.

A Malay daily reported that parents were infuriated by claims that some fares would hit RM300 a month.