School Transport Costs SR200 Annually, With Exemptions for Eligible Students.
Dubai: Students in Saudi Arabia could be suspended from using school transport or lose access to the service for the remainder of the academic year if they violate safety or behavioural rules on school buses, the Ministry of Education has warned.
The announcement comes as education departments across the Kingdom’s regions and governorates begin accepting school transport applications for the new academic year through the Noor electronic system.
Registration is open to male and female students across all three stages of general education, according to the Arabic daily Okaz.
The school transport service costs SR200 per year. However, the ministry has waived the fee for children from families receiving social security benefits and for students with disabilities.
With the new academic year set to begin tomorrow (Sunday), the ministry has also introduced a detailed set of safety rules aimed at protecting students while travelling to and from school.
Students are required to wait for buses in designated areas, board and exit in an orderly manner, remain in their assigned seats and wear seatbelts at all times. They must also follow the driver’s instructions and are strictly prohibited from sticking their heads, hands or any other part of their bodies out of windows or doors.
In the event of an emergency or accident, students are required to follow the driver’s instructions, use emergency exits when necessary and evacuate the bus calmly and in an orderly manner.
Parents are not allowed to board school buses. Instead, they can raise complaints with the school’s transport supervisor or contact the toll-free service operated by the Educational Transportation Development Company.
The ministry also urged parents not to interfere with routes set by the school transport operator.
Students who violate the rules could face temporary suspension from school transport or be barred from using the service for the remainder of the academic year. In such cases, the SR200 registration fee will not be refunded.
