Members of the Mykolaiv Regional Council decided to appeal to the Cabinet of Ministers regarding the shortage of school buses

The Mykolaiv region needs another 138 school buses, and 43 school bus driver positions remain unfilled. Members of the regional council are asking the Cabinet of Ministers to increase the subsidy for the purchase of buses.

Alla Velikhovska, director of the Department of Education and Science of the Mykolaiv Regional State Administration, reported this at a meeting of the standing committee of the Mykolaiv Regional Council.

According to her, 25 school buses were purchased in the region this year using state subsidy funds. Local communities co-finance these purchases on a 50-50 basis from their local budgets.

In total, as the department director explained, the region’s school bus fleet has been expanded by 71 vehicles. Some of them were provided free of charge.

In particular, she noted:

• the International Solidarity Fund from Poland provided assistance with the buses;
• with support from the Danish Embassy, Mykolaiv purchased 12 “Etalon” buses;
• the region purchased another 12 buses.

According to Velykhovska, the need for transportation is constantly growing due to logistical challenges. If a school in a certain area is not operating, it is necessary to figure out where and how to transport the children.

She noted that about 25% of the region’s territory was in the line of fire or under occupation. According to her, everything there has been destroyed, so children will have to be transported for a long time to come. Because of this, the department is requesting an increase in the state subsidy for buses.

The department director also explained that last year, subsidy funds could not be used in de-occupied territories. Therefore, she said, communities were forced to find money for buses and shelters on their own. This year, that option has become available.

According to her, Novyi Buh has already purchased three buses, while Bratske had planned to buy five but has so far been able to purchase only three. Communities that have buses, drivers, and logistics are also asking that road construction be included as a top priority in the plans, she added.

Drivers pose a separate problem. Forty-three positions remain vacant, as school bus drivers are predominantly men of draft age.

As Velykhovska reported, the issue of reserving school bus drivers was raised at the last community congress. According to her, the Minister of Education took note of this, and the proposal is currently under consideration. Information is being gathered across Ukraine, and a driver reservation system may be introduced for frontline territories or for all regions.

The involvement of women is also being discussed. However, there are requirements regarding work experience, and the pay is low, so there are few applicants.

Commission members unanimously supported the proposal to appeal to the Cabinet of Ministers to increase the state budget subsidy for the purchase of school buses. The goal is to renew the fleet and ensure student transportation in connection with the optimization of the educational network.

The commission’s decision will be forwarded to the Mykolaiv Regional State Administration for consideration.

Ірина Глухова