Independent scholar transport operators in South Africa’s North West province are struggling to keep their buses on the road after three months without payment from the Department of Transport, raising concerns about learners’ access to education.
Operators say they cannot afford essential vehicle costs, including road discs, new tyres and diesel, which now costs nearly R30 per litre. One operator described the situation as dire: “We can’t pay the disc of our buses. We can’t buy the tires. We can’t put even diesel.” He added that garages have closed their accounts because the operators owe more than R200,000. “It’s a challenge and every day school kids must go to school. We cannot deny the school kids the access to education,” he said.
The operators told reporters the problem has recurred every year between January and March for nearly a decade. They have repeatedly asked the department for an explanation and have been dipping into their own finances to buy diesel and pay drivers so that learners are not left stranded.
The Department of Transport said plans are in place to settle the outstanding payments. A department statement explained that during an earlier adjustment budget it received R10 million, which was used to pay some operators up to a particular period in the year. In the January adjustment budget, an additional R70 million was allocated specifically to clear payments for services rendered from April to December last year.
“What was then left was the January to March payments,” the department said. It confirmed that, to date, 221 invoices have been processed.
The department added that contracts with the affected operators will not be terminated without careful consideration.