Authorities crack down on privately owned school buses

AMMAN — Following a deadly bus accident earlier this week, the Public Security Department (PSD) started a campaign to crack down on privately owned school buses, PSD officials said on Wednesday.

The accident, caused by the bus driver failing to give way to another vehicle, occurred on Sunday in the northern city of Mafraq, 80km northeast of Amman, killing four children and injuring 23, according to the Central Traffic Department. 

Charging pupils for school transportation violates the law, the PSD official said, adding that many bus drivers tend to speed up, use their phones, forget to put their seatbelts on, and fail to abide by traffic rules and regulations.

The official said the drivers sometimes let more students on the bus in order to increase profit, which he described as “illegal and unethical”, adding that it puts the children’s lives at risk. 

He added that, sometimes, drivers do not pay attention to the number of passengers, which "creates a bigger risk on the lives of the school students", explaining that buses can take up to 25 passengers, but the recorded number of passengers is usually higher. 

Some parents told The Jordan Times that the privately owned buses are "the only way" to transport their children to and from schools, adding that it costs around JD20 per month, compared to the transportation fees of private schools, which sometimes reach more than JD600 per semester. 

A parent added that there was no alternative for families living in areas deprived of public transportation, especially in cities far from the capital, where not many services are provided. 

Strict measures will be taken against drivers who violate traffic rules and regulations, to ensure the safety of children, the PSD announced.