A week on from the return to classroom learning, the National School Bus System says things have gone according to plan.
The body had been preparing for the start of school, with several changes made necessary by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Some potential challenges had been identified early on, and the Transport Board’s network manager Arif Jonas had indicated that operations would be touch-and-go to begin with.
Speaking to Observer earlier today (Monday), Jonas said those hurdles had been adequately met and adjustments would continue, as more schools open their doors.
“This past week was much of a learning experience but at the same time we did not have all of the students out as we do this week starting today. So our loads were not that high,” he said.
“So any challenges that came were in terms of when we were getting times for schools closing and opening, because it was during the course of last week that a few of the primary schools were actually able to finalise their operating times,” he explained.
“So we were able to quickly make adjustments for those because we didn’t have nearly a full complement of secondary school students attending school last week. This week is going to be a different scenario.
“We are looking at our numbers from this morning right now and we will be doing the same for this afternoon and tomorrow. And from those numbers we will see if we need additional drivers or if we need to tweak anything that we are doing,” Jonas said.
Regarding children’s behaviour on the buses, Jonas said they have largely been adhering to the Covid-19 protocols, with no reports being made so far.
He added that any students who break the rules will not be permitted to use the bus service.