Safety fears spark scooter bus ban

GoBus bosses have revealed they will no longer transport scooters or bikes to school.

From Wednesday 18 September, students who are eligible to take a bus to school will have to leave their scooters ay home.

Many pupils use scooters to get from home to the bus stop.

In an email, Bohally Intermediate, who use the Ministry of Education contractors, say GoBus has been kind in the past and has allowed students with scooters.

But worries about the growing number of scooters and incidents mean GoBus is now enforcing the Government Policy.

The new policy will be enforced Marlborough-wide.

The move has been sudden, but the school supports the decision.

“It is not a decision GoBus has made lightly, they are aware of the extra strain that puts on families during the busy morning rush but the safety of all has to be the priority, the email says.

“Both GoBus and Bohally are sorry for the inconvenience.”

The email suggests that with summer approaching, the scooter ban may be a chance to encourage children not to use the bus.

“…with summer approaching get into the habit of biking, walking or scootering all the way to school.

“Or if dropping kids at the bus stop, perhaps consider dropping them closer to school so they can walk the remainder of the way.

“Get them to talk to their friends who also use the bus so they can be social and safe with a group.

"This may not be appropriate for Grovetown or Springcreek runs but for the majority of Witherlea students, this is certainly doable."

Many of the Witherlea-based students scoot to and from the last bus stop at the Hospital Road end of Wither Road.

For those living in the newer subdivisions along Taylor Pass Road, the journey by scooter can take up to 15 minutes.

A GoBus regional spokesperson says the health and safety of their passengers always comes first.

"This is a precautionary measure we have taken in line with our own guidelines to ensure we fulfil our duty as a safe and responsible bus service provider to the local community.

“While larger personal vehicles such as bicycles are not carried on our school bus services due to space and health and safety risks, skateboards and foldable scooters have been more of an informal arrangement, and one that has historically been managed at the driver’s discretion.

“However, with rapidly increased usage of scooters by more students, and especially larger, heavier and powered scooters, it has become more difficult to manage students alighting safely.

We have reinforced our policy to our drivers that scooters and skateboards are not allowed on school bus routes in Marlborough, to ensure the safety of the students in our care.”