The government has launched a survey to consult the public on the proposed introduction of free school transport to all students – regardless of whether they attend state, independent, or Church schools - in a bid to gauge the population's sentiments towards the logistical and time-management challenges that the proposal could face.
During the budget speech last October, the government announced that discussions and studies on the initiative would begin in 2018 with a view to offering such free transport for the scholastic year 2018/2019. It was later revealed that the Education Ministry will head the project with assistance from the Transport Ministry.
Since the initial proposal, both Prime Minister Joseph Muscat and Transport Minister Ian Borg have said that the government is determined to implement short, medium, and long-term measures by introducing the necessary infrastructure, while also promoting mobile activity to alternative modes of transport in a bid to decrease congestion's effects on air quality.
It is as yet unknown whether the service will start in the next scholastic year as questions sent to the Ministry of Education were not answered by the time of going to print.
It seems that the administrator of the service is yet to be chosen with the survey asking whether the respondent would want the administrator of the system to be an independent operator or the government.
Both the Labour Party and the Nationalist Party had included the initiative within their electoral manifestos in the last general election, and believed that the scheme would have a significant positive effect on morning traffic; however, it was only the Labour Party that provided some indication of what the scheme would cost.
Muscat had told a press conference on 29 May that the initiative, along with the increase in children's allowance, would cost a total of €21 million.
What does the survey say?
The survey, whose responses will be kept confidential and anonymous, asks respondents to provide details over the child's pick-up and drop-off sites, including their length of journey, the type of school they attend (and its name), and the student's level of education.
It is also revealed that the service will be made available to those residing more than 1km away from their school.
Respondents are also asked whether the cost of school transport factored into their decision regarding the mode they select, and whether they would make use of the service should be provided for free by the government.
The project naturally has many logistical challenges given the number of schools in different localities around the island. Parents are being asked whether they would use a central pickup point, rather than a door-to-door system.
There are also questions asking caregivers whether they would still use the service if the child was mixed with students from other types of schools and whether the presence of CCTV would help.
The same applied to different age groups (primary, secondary, kindergarten) and gender.
The presence of supervisors on every bus appears the agenda, with the survey asking respondents if they would want supervisors to be staff from the school, authorised persons, or individuals employed by a private company.
Time management seems to be another area of concern with the survey asking whether the caregiver would still use the service the child is picked up an hour or an hour and a half before school starts, and up to two hours after school ends.
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