Taveuni school bus services to resume

School bus services in Taveuni will resume from tomorrow morning.

Taveuni Buses operations manager Prakash Sami confirmed this following discussions with the Fijian Competition & Consumer Commission (FCCC).

Mr Sami said while the initial discussion was to resume this afternoon, however, many had already arranged transportation to take their students home after school.

"We are resuming our school bus services for our students from tomorrow morning," Mr Sami said.

He said the FCCC had assured the company that its concerns would be addressed at the earliest possible time.

"We will try our best to maintain our best services to our students travelling by our buses. Sorry for the inconvenience caused by our issues with the FCCC," he said.

School bus services were suspended on Monday because of a dispute over student fare arrangements, raising concerns among parents and students ahead of this week's Literacy and Numeracy Assessment (LANA) exams.

Mr Sami said only school bus services were suspended, while passenger bus services continued to operate across the island.

He said the company had been requesting the FCCC to align student bus fare subsidies in Taveuni with those in Vanua Levu and Viti Levu.

"We are not asking for any fare increase. This is not about fare, but our operational costs are much higher here and fuel is 35 cents more compared to the mainland," he said.

Mr Sami said the FCCC increased bus fares nationwide in 2024, with Government fully subsidising the increase in student fares to avoid placing an additional burden on families.

He said higher fuel prices and operating costs in Taveuni had contributed to the company's decision to suspend school bus services.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Education said it had worked with the Office of the Commissioner Northern, the Land Transport Authority (LTA), the Fiji Police Force and school leaders to minimise disruption.

Permanent Secretary for Education Navin Raj said contingency measures included transport assistance, monitoring student attendance and co-ordination with stakeholders.

The LTA also identified standby transport providers for affected routes if required.

Mr Raj said the Ministry's priority was to ensure students continued to access education safely with minimal disruption.

Minister for Public Works, Meteorological Services and Transport Ro Filipe Tuisawau said Government had activated a mitigation plan to maintain transport services.

The Fiji Sun emailed the FCCC for comment. No response had been received by the time this edition went to press.