Auckland school bus safety concerns spark outrage among North Shore parents, 40 students forced to stand with no air-conditioning

Auckland Transport (AT) has come under fire from parents of North Shore school students after an overcrowded school bus service, lacking air conditioning, has been labelled a “major concern and safety hazard”.

One concerned mother told the Herald about 40 kids are forced to stand on the buses, after all seats are occupied, with no air conditioning, while they drive along State Highway 1 from the Hibiscus Coast to schools on Auckland’s North Shore.

“I just think that’s extremely dangerous,” she said.

Video obtained by the Herald shows some students having to stand on top of seat backs, while holding on to handrails, with no extra room to stand on the floor of the overcrowded bus.

“We pay exorbitant rates and our kids are exposed to such a dangerous situation on the way to school and home,” the mother said.

The mother, originally from South America, said it was something that she would likely see in her home country but not in New Zealand.

Some students were forced to stand on top of seat backs, while holding on to handrails on the overcrowded bus.

“I couldn’t believe it... apparently, this has been going on for a couple of years now. I think it’s insane,” she said.

She said there had been an influx of people living in the Silverdale area so a lot more children are going to schools on the North Shore.

“I’m just waiting for something really bad to happen because a bus just needs to brake a little bit and all the kids will go flying big time,” she said.

The mother said multiple frustrated parents had created a WhatsApp group to discuss their concerns and had contacted AT, but received no response.

AT public transport service operations manager Duncan McGrory told the Herald AT is “working with school bus operators across Auckland to help ensure that there is enough capacity on bus routes to get students to school safely.

“We are aware of issues last week with an overcrowded school bus taking students from the Hibiscus Coast to North Shore schools and we have been in touch with the operator to ensure they are running the correct size of bus for this service,” McGrory said.

Auckland Transport said they are aware of issues with the overcrowded school bus and have been in touch with the operator to ensure they are running the correct size of bus for this service. Photo / Michael Craig

McGrory said there would be times during the school year when there is standing room only on school buses, particularly at the beginning of the term when attendance hits its peak.

“It is normal and safe for students to stand on a moving bus, but we want to make sure buses aren’t overcrowded so we are asking our operators to remind all their drivers about the capacity limits of their buses.”

AT said students should always tag on with their HOP cards when travelling on a school bus.

“That way AT will have accurate information about how busy these services are so we can better manage capacity on these buses,” said McGrory.

The Herald understands students on the bus attend Rosmini College, Carmel College and other schools on Auckland’s North Shore.

Rosmini College principal Nixon Cooper said the school had contacted Auckland Transport last week to express its concern about overcrowded buses.

Rosmini College had contacted Auckland Transport last week amid concerns about the overcrowded bus. Photo / Alex Burton

The Herald has sought comment from Carmel College and NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi.

In 2018 AT defended its attempts to axe school buses, saying it can cost an extra $50,000 to $100,000 a year to operate an extra bus often only needed on a single school route.

AT said more than 70 per cent of students caught regular public transport to school and the council body provided school buses where there was no suitable public option.

This drew a raft of complaints from the loss of school buses and other changes from the rollout of new bus networks across the city.

Another concerned parent said her 11-year-old daughter, along with several other kids that catch the bus service, missed their bus stop last week as they “couldn’t see the stop due to too many people standing.

“She also got home with headaches and was not feeling well due to the heat on the bus. The air conditioning wasn’t working,” they said.

Last month festivalgoers of Raglan’s Soundsplash “had to beg” the driver of a Ritchies bus to pull over on an Auckland motorway after enduring extreme heat while sitting in traffic without any air conditioning.

The bus was transporting about 50 teenagers back to Auckland before having to pull over at the Karaka McDonald’s amid concerns it wasn’t safe to continue the trip, Ritchies said in a statement.

Multiple teens allegedly passed out the bus ride after high temperatures appeared to cause an air conditioning unit to malfunction.

Benjamin Plummer is an Auckland-based reporter who covers breaking news. He has worked for the Herald since 2022.