Gauteng scholar transport services to resume, but budget constraints cast a long shadow

In Khutsong on the West Rand, groups of primary school children made a perilous 8km trek to class, a journey that required them to cross a dangerous river.

They were forced to do this after the operators of scholar transport services in Gauteng went on strike. The strike, which began on Monday, 2 February, was initiated by the Gauteng Small Bus Operators Council (Gasboc), following a breakdown in negotiations with the Gauteng Department of Education (GDE) over months of unpaid invoices.

However, after two weeks of disruption, relief is in sight. Following intense negotiations, Gauteng Education MEC Matome Chiloane announced on Tuesday, 10 February, that an agreement had been reached to end the strike.

He said transport services were set to resume in phases starting on Thursday, 12 February, with full operations expected to return to normal by Monday, 16 February. Chiloane explained that the phased return was necessary to allow operators time to service vehicles and retrieve buses that had been moved to safer locations to avoid vandalism during the strike.

Chiloane apologised to parents and learners for the frustration caused and said the department’s curriculum branch had prepared academic recovery plans to help learners catch up on lost teaching time.

The human cost

Gasboc chairperson Jabulani Khumalo said operators had insisted on full payment for November and December invoices before services resumed. He noted that they submitted a memorandum on 2 February and met with officials on 5 February, rejecting a partial offer limited to December payment only.

“It’s unfortunate that we find ourselves in this situation. It affects our kids. It affects our families. We are parents too; our children sit in the same classrooms as yours. We know of a child stabbed to death in Tshwane and another in Carletonville; it’s heartbreaking. The situation is bad, learners can’t access education or school nutrition,” he said.

A parent from Palm Ridge told of the hardship they faced since school buses stopped running last Monday.

“Obviously, the alternative transport is only taxis, which we don’t have the money for,” she said. A month’s taxi fare for her daughter in high school is about R450. She also has a daughter in primary school, whom she walks to school every day during the strike.

“We are struggling a lot. It’s very painful and very stressful,” she said.

In Katlehong, one mother, who asked to remain anonymous, revealed the impossible choices she faced. Last week, she had to leave work early to walk her two primary school children home. Her employer then issued a stark warning: continue leaving early, and you will be placed on unpaid leave.

“I cannot afford to pay for a taxi, and now I must choose between work, money for food, or keeping my children at home,” she said.

MEC admits to cash flow crunch

Chiloane acknowledged the validity of the operators’ grievances, admitting that the department had failed to meet its financial obligations. Addressing the media on Tuesday, Chiloane confirmed that the department owed operators payment for November and December, but denied that there was a three-month backlog.

He confirmed that invoices for December had been paid and committed to settling the outstanding November payments by the end of this week.

“The reason for non-payment is cash flow. Budget cuts have affected us greatly,” said Chiloane, noting that the department and operators were negotiating a new payment plan to align timelines more realistically with the department’s financial constraints.

Permit struggles

The strike involves 250 contracted scholar transport service providers, operating an estimated 3,600 buses and transporting about 238,000 learners daily across Gauteng.

A secondary headache involves obtaining operating permits from the Department of Community Safety. Khumalo said operators had long used versatile charter permits for both learners and private hires. Now, officials demand dedicated scholar transport permits.

“Unfortunately, it becomes a challenge to most of the operators because we operate on a strict pay-as-you-go basis; it is also stripping away extra revenue from private hires and putting providers at a severe disadvantage,” he said.

Khumalo said some operators had applied for permits as far back as 2023 and were still waiting for approval.

However, Roads and Transport MEC Kedibone Diale-Tlabela said there was “no backlog” for compliant applications, and that delays in receiving permits were caused by operators submitting incomplete paperwork or failing to meet strict legal requirements.

She said the department had received roughly 1,500 recent applications, of which about 500 permits had been issued. Approximately 1,000 applications were stuck in the “finalisation phase” largely due to missing documents or outstanding municipal clearances.

While the announcement that buses will return on Thursday brings a collective sigh of relief to parents, the anxiety lingers. As the department and operators navigate their new payment plan, families across Gauteng hope that this resolution is permanent and that their children won’t have to walk to school again when the next billing cycle arrives. DM