Rural School Bus Programme rolled out in St Thomas

The Rural School Bus Programme Back-to-School Tour got under way at Yallahs Primary School in St Thomas on Monday, with eight buses deployed to serve students throughout the parish during the 2026/27 academic year.

The buses will operate along seven routes, providing transportation for students attending 26 schools.

The undertaking forms part of the national rollout of the Rural School Bus Programme, which is designed to provide safe, reliable and affordable transportation for students in rural communities.

Across Jamaica, 99 buses are being deployed on 86 routes to provide transportation for students attending 126 schools.

Minister of Energy, Transport and Telecommunications, Daryl Vaz, said he was pleased with the progress of the programme, noting that the summer period was used to service both the Jamaica Urban Transit Company (JUTC) fleet and the rural school buses.

“[We are also] far advanced with discussions with the Ministry of Finance [and the Public Service] for the second phase of [the programme] which will [involve] 100 new school buses, similar to what we have, with the same specifications, purpose-built… but new buses, based on the fact that we need that for the terrain and the logistics of the schools across Jamaica,” he advised.

The Minister added that the JUTC is also expected to receive 100 new buses, representing the third tranche of the 300 buses committed since he assumed office in May 2023.

“These buses will be put in production and will get here for the next school year, which is the 2027/28 Budget year,” Vaz indicated.

Meanwhile, Minister of Education, Skills, Youth and Information, Senator Dr Dana Morris Dixon, emphasised that reliable transportation is a key element of education, as it helps to ensure that students have consistent access to learning opportunities.

She noted that data collected by the Ministry has highlighted disparities in school attendance between students in rural and urban communities.

“Many students in rural areas miss school for part of the week… and that is because of the expense of transportation,” the Minister pointed out.

Morris Dixon said the Rural School Bus Programme is, therefore, critical to achieving equitable educational outcomes for children across the country.

Meanwhile, JUTC Managing Director, Owen Ellington, said the buses were adequately prepared for the new academic year following extensive maintenance and servicing work carried out during the summer break.

“Therefore, we are in a position to deploy at what we call optimal level this morning for the rural school buses and for the JUTC adult service,” he stated.

- JIS News

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