By Cameron Weston
ANGRYparents say overcrowded buses are compromising the safety of highschool students in Altona Meadows and Laverton, and are making them late for school.
The parents have organised a forum to discuss the issue because students, some as young as 13, were left stranded by “special” school bus services in the area which are struggling to cope with increasing demand.
They said the number of new and mostly Year 7 students using the bus service had only made the problem worse.
The bus carries students from Altona Meadows and Laverton to Williamstown High School and Bayside Secondary College.
“The first two weeks of the school year were horrible for the parents, with kids trying to catch buses at the nearest stop, but they couldn’t get in because the bus was too crowded,” said Vesna Trajlov, the parent of a Year 7 student who has often been left stranded.
“I’m never sure if my child can get to school safely or on time. That really worries me,” she said.
Ms Trajlov said overcrowding was also common on public bus routes in the area, meaning students had few options once the school bus had “sailed by”.
“By the time the bus gets to Victoria St in Altona Meadows it is already full. There is no other school bus to take them. Kids have to call parents or look for another way to get to school.”
Westrans operates both the special school bus service and the public bus service, and manager Rick Szakiel said that scheduling was under constant review.
Mr Szakiel agreed that school buses travelling from Altona Meadows and Laverton have been getting fuller, but said it was not the company’s responsibility to fix the problem.
“We’re under contract to the Department of Infrastructure.”
He said there were strict “load limits” imposed, that varied between bus types, and said drivers had little choice but to miss stops when limits were reached.
A DoI spokesperson wouldn’t comment on the problem, other than recommend Altona Meadows and Laverton students catch “numerous public transport options involving buses and trains”.
Parents are concerned bus services have not increased with the population, especially as the number of school-aged kids continued to grow as many young families move into the area.
“Each year there are more students, so next year there are going to be more. But there is still only one bus,” Ms Trajlov said.
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“There’s only one bus in the morning for two schools.”
Ms Trajlov said for many young students, the lack of busses added extra stress to the already difficult transition from primary school to high school.
A spokesman for Premier and Member for Williamstown Steve Bracks said the bus shortage was being “looked at” by both the Department of Education and the Department of Infrastructure, with “numerous options currently on the table”.
“A resolution will be found soon and hopefully something will come out of this forum as well.”
The spokesman said “creative options” might be needed to solve the bus shortage.
He said this could include parents contributing an amount of money, similar to what they would spend on public transport each year, to the operation of a “dedicated school bus”, although he said a detailed costing of this option had not been undertaken.
The public forum will be held at the Altona Meadows Community Centre on 20 July, from 7.30pm to 9pm.
