Parents should play greater role in ensuring safety

Travelling by buses in turns, they can observe the driver and the condition of the buses

As many as 65 students of a private school were injured in an accident involving three school buses on the Yarada Hill in December 2017.

The students were being taken in four buses for a picnic at the Yarada Beach.

Three of the four buses were going one after the other. While descending the steep hill, the driver of the first bus lost control and crashed into the hill, reportedly due to brake failure. The other two buses crashed into it resulting in the injuries.

Luckily, the bus driver crashed into the hill side on the right. Had he turned to the left, the bus would crashed into the parapet wall and fallen to the ground deep below resulting in a major disaster.

Drivers' negligence

“There was negligence on the part of the drivers. They should have maintained the minimum prescribed distance. Had they done so, the children would have been saved,” said Motor Vehicle Inspector M. Butchiraju, recalling the incident.

“Around 99% of the school buses have installed speed governors. But now we are not insisting on GPS as the government has relaxed the rule,” he said.

“Parents should also take greater interest by forming committees and taking turns to travel in the school bus at frequent intervals to watch the behaviour of the driver and prevent possible rash driving,” says Regional Transport Officer M. Venkatarama Reddy.

One can understand the plight of parents whenever they hear of school bus accidents. But how many parents bother to find out the condition of the bus and the attitude of the driver towards safety?

A week after the reopening of the schools, many buses are yet to get the mandatory Fitness Certificate (FC) from the Regional Transport Authority (RTA).

As many as 374 out of 1,831 school (educational institution) buses are yet to obtain it, as on June 20.

The FC was rejected in some cases and Certificate of Fitness Rejection Report (CFFR) notices were issued for them. The CFFR would give the reasons for rejection and the applicant/driver would be given a copy. The technical defects would have to be rectified and the bus could be brought for FC again after a week.

“School buses can be taken out on to the roads only with an FC. Otherwise, they are liable to be seized and heavy penalties would be imposed. Here parents can also play a key role by checking the FC,” says Deputy Transport Commissioner S. Venkateswara Rao.

“All that the parents have to do is to note down the registration number of the bus and check its FC validity on the website: www.aptransport.org by typing the registration no. and finding the status. They can also report to me on my mobile no. 98481 71102 or send an SMS or WhatsApp message any discrepancy,” he said.

Further, the buses cannot be used for weddings and political meetings and managements would face hefty penalty for violation of the rule. The owner and the driver would be prosecuted. The school management has to give prior intimation to the Transport Department even if a single driver is replaced by them.