Ensure that no child is left alone in the school bus
Published: 05:08 PM,Aug 28,2024 | EDITED : 09:08 PM,Aug 28,2024
Muscat
With the new academic year set to begin on September 1, the Royal Oman Police (ROP) has urged bus drivers and other stakeholders to take all steps that are essential to ensure the safety of children.
Major Harith bin Moosa al Kindi from the directorate general of ROP traffic said that school bus drivers must be patient and vigilant, focus on the road, and follow traffic rules.
To ensure that no student is left behind in the bus while travelling to school or returning home, he said, 'Unfortunately, there have been incidents where students have been left behind in buses in the past. We try to raise awareness with bus drivers as much as possible, to make regular checks when students board the bus and when they leave the bus. We also try to educate school employees to focus more on these areas.'
He said that ROP is evaluating new technologies to ensure that these incidents don't occur and the use of onboard cameras will help not just to monitor the driver's behaviour but will ensure that no student is left behind on the bus.
Al Kindi said that there will be more police patrols near schools to avoid run-over accidents.
'ROP is always evaluating and studying new zones to increase police patrol and the police presence around schools.'
It may be noted that one or two cases of students left behind are reported each year despite active campaigns by the authorities. In some cases, there have been loss of lives too.
'One of the main reasons is that students are tired after long days in school or due to lack of adequate sleep at night, which makes them fall asleep inside buses and miss the bus stop,' said a manager of a school bus operator in Muscat.
Parents feel schools should take responsibility for the bus services. 'Parents have their limitations once students board the bus for school till they return home. It is not about having high-tech buses, but also having the right persons on the wheels,' said one of the parents.
The Made-in-Oman school buses produced by Karwa Motors will hit the roads this academic year, which will be equipped with internal and external surveillance cameras, safe organisation of passenger seats, the presence of an emergency exit, and a clear view for the driver and passengers, an automatic fire extinguishing system, high-quality and high-performance air conditioning, a safety lock on the doors, and a distinctive design for the side doors with a sensor system.
The school bus will include first aid boxes, engine sensors, an external sensor system, a bus tracking system via GPS technology, and a driver performance monitoring system.
With the new academic year set to begin on September 1, the Royal Oman Police (ROP) has urged bus drivers and other stakeholders to take all steps that are essential to ensure the safety of children.
Major Harith bin Moosa al Kindi from the directorate general of ROP traffic said that school bus drivers must be patient and vigilant, focus on the road, and follow traffic rules.
To ensure that no student is left behind in the bus while travelling to school or returning home, he said, 'Unfortunately, there have been incidents where students have been left behind in buses in the past. We try to raise awareness with bus drivers as much as possible, to make regular checks when students board the bus and when they leave the bus. We also try to educate school employees to focus more on these areas.'
He said that ROP is evaluating new technologies to ensure that these incidents don't occur and the use of onboard cameras will help not just to monitor the driver's behaviour but will ensure that no student is left behind on the bus.
Al Kindi said that there will be more police patrols near schools to avoid run-over accidents.
'ROP is always evaluating and studying new zones to increase police patrol and the police presence around schools.'
It may be noted that one or two cases of students left behind are reported each year despite active campaigns by the authorities. In some cases, there have been loss of lives too.
'One of the main reasons is that students are tired after long days in school or due to lack of adequate sleep at night, which makes them fall asleep inside buses and miss the bus stop,' said a manager of a school bus operator in Muscat.
Parents feel schools should take responsibility for the bus services. 'Parents have their limitations once students board the bus for school till they return home. It is not about having high-tech buses, but also having the right persons on the wheels,' said one of the parents.
The Made-in-Oman school buses produced by Karwa Motors will hit the roads this academic year, which will be equipped with internal and external surveillance cameras, safe organisation of passenger seats, the presence of an emergency exit, and a clear view for the driver and passengers, an automatic fire extinguishing system, high-quality and high-performance air conditioning, a safety lock on the doors, and a distinctive design for the side doors with a sensor system.
The school bus will include first aid boxes, engine sensors, an external sensor system, a bus tracking system via GPS technology, and a driver performance monitoring system.