PARENTS should brace for higher bus fares when school reopens in March, Free Malaysia Today reports.

Federation of School Bus Associations Malaysia president Amali Munif Rahmat said fares could rise RM10-20 a month.

Amali said the new minimum wage of RM1,500 and higher prices of imported spare parts, partly due to the weak ringgit, were the cause of the fare hikes.

He said how much the fares would increase depended on “the consensus between school bus operators and parents”.

The government stopped regulating school bus fares in 2015, after which operators were allowed to set their own rates for their services.

Putrajaya has been subsidising the diesel for registered school buses since 2017, at RM1.88 per litre. Diesel is currently retailing at RM2.15 per litre..

“Parents shouldn’t think that the increase is a random amount but calculate it based on daily use. For example, if we raise the fares by RM20, it’s only an increase of 90 sen per day, and that is affordable.”

He added that some parents don’t pay the full month’s fare if there are two weeks of school holidays in the month.

“Our income is not based on the daily or weekly journeys. We are paid based on the school sessions.

“Drivers also have to cover the costs of operations the whole year and mandatory maintenance every three months.” – January 14, 2024.