Overcrowded buses leaving Tartu suburb students behind
Students catching buses from Kõrveküla Basic School toward Tartu are increasingly being left behind by overcrowding, with no relief in sight before 2028.
Parents raised the issue with Tartu Municipality at the start of the school year, citing buses that are too full to accommodate all students, particularly on afternoon routes toward the rapidly growing Raadi area.
"The bus was so full that I tried to squeeze myself in, but everyone squeezed me back out," said Kevin, adding that this happens pretty frequently.
"I most often catch the bus to make it to practice," said Mirko, another student. "One time I missed the bus too, because it was so crowded."
Tartu Municipal Mayor Jarno Laur admitted there is no quick fix to the issue because both city and county buses are already operating at their maximum contracted capacity.
"There is absolutely no way for us to add departures under the existing contracts," Laur said.
The situation is further complicated by schools' ministry-imposed change to a 9 a.m. start, which the mayor said will require the municipality to arrange separate school bus routes starting next school year.
Most commuters travel to work in Tartu for 8 a.m., he said, making it difficult to use the same buses efficiently for both groups.
"Regional public transport centers have told us they cannot provide school bus transport with state subsidies because their role is to provide transport for working people," Laur said.
"For us, that means we'll have to set up separate school bus routes, even though we currently serve three schools with one bus route and the next two with another," he continued. "Meaning we'll have to rework what I'd say is a fairly efficient transportation system."
Articulated buses, extra capacity
Until additional capacity becomes available, the municipal mayor said students could be spread out by adjusting school schedules or using county buses, although some county bus stops are located further from home.
Tartu Municipality plans to address the problem in future transportation procurements by including larger articulated buses for rush hour departures and reserving some city-route capacity for necessary additional service.
"These issues will be easier to address in the next upcoming procurements," Laur noted.
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Editor: Marko Tooming, Aili Vahtla
