Noida: Overloaded e-rickshaws, autorickshaws and private vans, often driving on the wrong side of the road, continue to remain preferred transport options for schoolchildren across Ghaziabad and Noida as they are cheaper and offer doorstep pick-up and drop-off.Private vans typically charge Rs 800-1,200 per student a month, compared with Rs 2,000-5,000 for school buses. But inadequate safety checks, poor monitoring, overcrowding and rash driving have their own risks.Last week, four students of DAV Public School in Pratap Vihar’s Sector 12 had a narrow escape as an Eeco van, hired privately to transport them to school, lost control, hit a roadside tree and plunged 5 feet onto the service lane below. The driver, who was let off the hook as there was no complaint filed against him, was hardly 2km from the school when he “accidentally” put his foot on the accelerator instead of the brake. And this was not a one-off case.On Dec 15, 2023, three children of Holy Field School in Vasundhara’s Sector 3 were injured as their school van was hit by a Scorpio in Sector 4 of the area. At the time of the crash, 19 students were inside the van.Ghaziabad Parents Association media coordinator Vivek Tyagi told TOI that families living in areas off regular school bus routes have little option but to hire private vans or autos as these are convenient and cheaper. But he agreed that parents were mostly unaware of whether these vehicles meet fitness and safety requirements.A parent from Vijay Nagar, whose son studies at a private school in Ghaziabad and takes a van to school, shared that school buses were more time-consuming because they make multiple stops and also have to wait for students at different locations. “Students have to leave home much earlier and spend more time commuting. Vans usually carry fewer students and can take a more direct route, so children reach school faster. Parents have to balance safety, convenience, travel time and affordability when choosing transport for their children,” he said.Some parents also pointed out that schools usually charged transport fees for May and June even when buses do not operate.Schools, meanwhile, said they had safety measures in place for their buses but cannot be held accountable for privately hired vans and autos. “Drivers and support staff undergo regular training. Each bus has a driver, helper, supervisor and a teacher as the bus in charge, with a woman staff member accompanying junior school children. Seating is fixed, and buses carry students only up to their designated capacity. All buses are equipped with CCTV cameras, GPS tracking and an RFID system,” said a spokesperson of Delhi Public School, Greater Noida.Data shared by RTO shows that 4,150 school buses are registered under school names in Noida (2,106) and Ghaziabad (2,044), while 1,535 run on contract in Ghaziabad (248) and Noida (1,287). It also shows that the transport office has issued challans to 233 school buses in both districts this year.According to Ghaziabad ACP (traffic) Suchita Singh, several vans, autorickshaws and e-rickshaws illegally add extra seats to pack in more students. So, a van meant for six to eight children packs in more than 10, while e-rickshaws built to seat four people often carry 8-10 schoolchildren, with drivers often operating the vehicles at high speed. Parents, the officer said, are aware but often ignore the risks.“Between Sept 15 and 17, police organised a drive to seize and penalise autorickshaw and e-rickshaw operators for adding extra seats and overcrowding under sections 52 and 182A of the Motor Vehicles Act. We removed such illegal modifications from nearly 1,800 autos. Spot challans were issued to 1,462 autos violating the rules. Twenty-six autos were seized,” Singh said, adding that several of these vehicles were used to transport school children too.A senior police officer said traffic police had urged school authorities at a meeting a few months ago to advise parents that vehicles hired privately to transport kids to school must not be overcrowded and drivers must not drive on the wrong side. Staff had informed parents at a PTA meeting.In Noida, DCP (traffic) Abhay Kumar Mishra said cops were reaching out to e-rickshaw drivers and other operators carrying school students and urging them to follow the traffic rules. “We are also trying to make students aware of the same through awareness programmes in schools,” he said.From Jan to Aug this year, 21,943 challans were issued for overcrowded vehicles, while 13,345 challans were issued for wrong-side driving.
