The situation escalated after operators contracted by the Education Department downed tools for two weeks over non-payment.
It has been a turbulent start to the academic year in Gauteng, as scholar transport operators have been at loggerheads with the Departments of Education and the Gauteng Roads and Transport.
The situation escalated after operators contracted by the Education Department downed tools for two weeks over non-payment. The strike left more than 200,000 scholars stranded and unable to attend school. Meanwhile, tensions have also been rising with private scholar transport operators.
The tensions come as the Department of Education continues to face pressure for failing to place all learners at the start of the school year. About a thousand learners are still without classroom placements.
While those who have been allocated schools have not been attending regularly, as government-contracted operators withheld their buses until outstanding payments were made. They are now expected to return to school on Monday.
On Friday, hundreds of private scholar operators took to the streets, demanding to be allowed to operate without complying with specific requirements for scholar transport. These include possessing valid public driving permits and driver’s licences, driving vehicles that are roadworthy, and adhering to capacity load limits.
The operators are expected to meet with Gauteng Roads and Transport MEC Kedibone Diale-Tlabela on Saturday. But her department maintains that compliance with scholar regulations is non-negotiable.
