Review of school bus services in regional SA

Consultation Process

This online engagement was hosted on YourSAy from 20 January 2019 to 15 February 2019. Below is a record of the consultation process.

What is being decided?

We are reviewing government school bus services in regional South Australia to see how government school buses can provide travel for all students, regardless of what school they attend (government or non-government school).

We are also considering making school buses available for broader community use and if moving the responsibility for school buses from the Department for Education to the Department for Planning, Transport and Infrastructure will make services more effective and efficient.

To help us with this review we want to hear from parents and caregivers of students, and the broader community in regional South Australia, about how these changes will affect them. We also want your thoughts on the implications of making school buses available for community purposes.

This consultation is an initial step in the review, which also includes working with key stakeholders and experts.

How you can get involved

Read the Review of School Bus Services Terms of Reference(Opens in a new window) and the SA School Transport Policy(Opens in a new window) and provide your feedback by:

• joining the online discussion
• emailing a written submission to schoolbusreview@sa.gov.au.

How can your input influence the decision?

Your input will help shape how government and non-government school students in regional areas get to school and what bus services are provided to regional communities.

This will help us decide on the best way to ensure consistent school transport for all regional students.

How will your input be used?

Responses will be included in a report provided to the government by the end of March 2019. Community feedback will help the Government make decisions about the best way to provide fair access to school bus services for regional students.

Contact:

For more information contact:

email: schoolbusreview@sa.gov.au.

Closing date: 5pm, Friday 15 February 2019.

Background

In 2018, the State Government committed to ensuring that all school students have fair access to school buses in regional South Australia, based on the principle that regional students should have reasonable access to transport as they do in the city.

The current school transport policy offers school bus access to government and non-government school students who meet specific eligibility criteria. Currently more than 430 school bus routes provide transport for students across regional South Australia and approximately 14,600 students use these services. These services are currently overseen by the Department for Education.

As part of this review we are currently meeting with key stakeholders from both government and non-government sectors to discuss how these potential changes might affect them.

To help us with this review we want to hear from parents/caregivers of students and the broader community in regional South Australia about:

• options and implications to ensure all school students in regional South Australia have a place on the school bus
• implications if existing government school buses start making stops at non-government schools on their current route and outside of their route
• options and implications for school buses to be available for community purposes
• transferring government school bus responsibility from the Department for Education to the Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure to make services more effective and efficient.

Read the Review of School Bus Services Terms of Reference(Opens in a new window) and the SA School Transport Policy(Opens in a new window).