Statement of Objectives

The objectives of the School Bus Services branch in 2004/05 were to:

• provide transport assistance for eligible students to assist them to attend their nearest government or non-government school offering the appropriate year of study;
• ensure that the transport assistance provided to students was appropriate, safe, cost-effective and fair in its application;
• ensure that all service contracts were managed effectively and efficiently in accordance with agreements made between the Minister, the PTA and individual contractors and/or their representatives.

In realising these objectives, the following were the major achievements by SBS in 2004/05:

• computer system enhancements to allow better management of the new school bus contracts signed by contractors in January 2004 (affecting 701 contracts);
• update of School Bus Services policy documentation for School Bus Services staff and internal and external customers;
• new tendering template developed for shortterm contracts for school bus services;
• major surveys through Data Analysis Australia to verify the average speed of school bus routes, fuel consumption and bus tyre life - these surveys will continue in 2005/06;
• establishment of Composite Rate Model (payment model) indexation process,
• establishment of the Composite Rate Model Review process;
• development of a new Safety Management Plan for school bus contractors;
• review of school bus routes to maximise service delivery and efficiencies in rural Western Australia;
• review of bus routes to maximise service delivery and efficiencies in metropolitan Perth.

Service

The use of school bus services is measured by the annual number of student bus service place kilometres. This number fell in 2004/05 due to rationalisation of school bus routes as part of the School Bus Services Route Review Project.

Service reliability measures school bus timetable reliability for rural mainstream services and Special Education School Buses operating in the Per th metropolitan area.The reliability measure is arrival less than 10 minutes before school starts and departure less than 10 minutes after school finishes. It was lower in 2004/05 mainly due to unavoidable delays in transporting students with special needs on special education school buses. Efficiency

The increase in 2004/05 is a result of the higher costs of new Composite Rate Model school bus contract. This was the first full year of the contract.