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School bus pass refused - fuel surcharge

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Comments

  • sienew said:
    The service is appalling - old dirty repurposed London buses in poor repair,
    To be fair, if the busses are treated anything like they were by the students when I was at school this is to be expected. The busses for school runs are usually old busses specifically bought for that purpose as 100 students on a bus can make quite a mess.
    Agreed, except it won't be in poor repair.

    PSV standards are very strict.
    The state of the interiors (my sons have sent me photos) and the frequency of the breakdowns leads me to believe they are in poor repair.
  • onashoestring
    onashoestring Posts: 1,631 Forumite
    Tenth Anniversary 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    edited 6 September 2022 at 9:02AM
    If you do not feel that you are getting good value for money from this arrangement It does not mean you can stop paying the bus company and still expect to get the service .

    You are entitled to make your own arrangements for transporting your son to school. Such as taking him there yourself or a taxi .

    With school starting tomorrow, phone around local taxi companies ( 3 if possible ) to get a quote for a regular school run morning and afternoon 5 days a week during term time - this will give you something to compare with the cost of the bus pass . 

    If there is another student or 2 living nearby you maybe able to arrange to share the taxi costs with their parents if it will save you all money . 
     

    Presumably last year when there was “a serious accident caused by speeding” you reported it and complained to the bus company and school at the time -  what response did you receive ?

    Safety being paramount,  if parents  raised concerns last year about a  serious accident I am very surprised that the contract was not ended with the bus company immediately-  if the cause was proven to be dangerous driving . 

    Be careful what you wish for however with regards to old buses being used - If the school ends this contract with this bus company and awards it to a different company with newer buses with a less tight timetable the costs of the pass may rise considerably. 


  • sheramber
    sheramber Posts: 20,896 Forumite
    Tenth Anniversary 10,000 Posts I've been Money Tipped! Name Dropper
    What do other parents think about the situation?

    Can you get them together to organise a protest to the council?

    I doubt anybody will listen to one parent complaining.

  • Grey_Critic
    Grey_Critic Posts: 1,354 Forumite
    Eighth Anniversary 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    You could of course report the bus operator to the Traffic Commissioners.
    Have a read through this.
    It tells you how to make a complaint - Remember if nobody complains then nobody knows there is a problem.



  • jimbo6977
    jimbo6977 Posts: 1,276 Forumite
    Seventh Anniversary 1,000 Posts Name Dropper
    A scary number of years ago when I was in high school my parents along with a few others complained about our school buses being in poor repair (they were dogs, a large hole in the floor with exposed driveshaft being the most memorable fault). The coach company lost its operator's licence within a week and sank without trace. So I would advise the OP to complain. 
  • Grey_Critic
    Grey_Critic Posts: 1,354 Forumite
    Eighth Anniversary 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    I do recall my youngest on a school trip telling the driver to take the bus to the garage and my Dad would fix it.
    We had a laugh about it when he did.
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