School buses endanger children's lives in north

Photo from Yeniduzen

By Kyriacos Kiliaris

School students and their families in the north of Cyprus are complaining that the kids' lives are in danger due to the bad conditions prevailing in the public school transportation system.

As if the problems faced by the Turkish Cypriot public education were not enough, a Yeniduzen article along with photos making the rounds on social media accounts, reveal that students in the north are being transported under dangerous conditions.

Also read

Students left without a classroom in Kyrenia schools

Photos of children squeezed in rows of the bus, while others are standing in the corridor have caused the reactions of many parents. 

 

Adding to the above an expose by Turkish Cypriot newspaper Yeniduzen claims that a number of old buses which do not have seatbelt nor airconditioning are still being used for transporting school children from and to their schools.

Mehmet Avci, the head of the Traffic Accident Prevention Association told Yeniduzen that the majority of the school buses do not meet the necessary safety standards. Moreover “there is no report issued in the north on the safety of the school buses” said Avci. 

 

He confirmed that most buses do not carry the necessary seatbelts for the safety of children.

He also said that the buses do not have indications such as warning signs to let other motorists know that the bus is carrying school children. “In other countries there are even stop signs that are turned on when the bus comes to a stop, warning other drivers that children are getting off the bus”. Avci said that the safest is for other drivers to stop when a school bus in front of them comes to a stop as a child may jump in the road at any moment.

The head of the traffic watchdog organisation also reported that many school buses do not have airconditioning systems. “Because of this, many buses hit the roads with their doors open adding another risk factor for the safety of the children” said Avci.

“A few years ago a school kid was killed after falling out of the bus from the doors that were left open due to the lack of an air cooling system”.