Aquinas College's Lee-Ann Taylor (right) is overjoyed with a year's trial of school buses.
School buses will be free for students in Tauranga from January as part of a year-long trial aimed at helping alleviate the city's congestion and affordability for parents.
Bay of Plenty Regional Council will fund the year's trial of a city-wide free school bus fare scheme for students travelling to and from school. The decision follows six months of a free school bus trial already in place for Welcome Bay students.
The decision was made in Friday's regional council meeting where elected members signed off on their 2019/20 Annual Plan. It also comes following years of lobbying by parents such as Lee-Anne Taylor calling for the return of free school buses.
"I'm ecstatic that they've listened to people's voices. That they care about the children. It will make a huge impact on traffic as well. I'm overjoyed," she said.
Taylor, head of the Aquinas College Parent-Teacher Association, said she saw the impact on families trying to get children to school daily. In particular "the ones who can't afford to put their kids on the buses, this will affect all of them".
Free school buses would also have a positive impact on employers now employees were no longer limited to picking up and dropping off children at school, she said.
Aquinas College's Lee-Ann Taylor (right) is overjoyed with a year's trial of school buses. She's pictured with principal Kurt Kennedy and students Sam Way and Ben Sokimi. Photo / George Novak
"It's good to show the kids who signed the petitions that if you stand up and fight for what's right, your voice will be heard.
Taylor said it was important the regional council ensured the routes were well thought out.
The scheme will cost $326,000 in the annual plan, which Pāpāmoa mum Michelle Beaumont-Whibley said was a "pittance" if it helped alleviate pressure on infrastructure.
Beaumont-Whibley's 14-year-old son regularly catches a bus to school.
She remembered when his bus to school used to be free, about three years ago, and the difference in congestion on Tauranga roads in that time.
"You definitely noticed a lot more congestion. There's growth as well which coincides with all of that. But you see it in the school holidays, where is everybody? It's like a ghost town."
Beaumont-Whibley said the return of free school buses was "epic".
Regional councillor Stuart Crosby said the decision was three-fold and had plenty of support. If a parent had more than one child needing to catch a bus it became expensive, he said.
"I do agree with it ... look at the potential; a) affordability, b) to assist with congestion and c) to get young people used to using buses so when they become adults it is already a habit.
"It's the first high-level investment that both the Bay of Plenty Regional Council and Tauranga City Council should make in terms of people using other modes of transport.
"Walking and cycling are good but they don't suit everybody."
In a written statement released today, Bay of Plenty Regional Council chairman Doug Leeder said he expected the trial would help with future decisions about public transport and its role in the region.
"Where there is a net cost to council, transport initiatives will primarily be funded through targeted rates, meaning that those who are likely to benefit from the services will pay for it," Leeder said.
