29 Jan 2020
The Chester Hill High School Bus Timetables have changed in 2020 to accomodate our new school timetable.
Please see the 2020 bus timetable document so you and your child are aware of this.
Below is some important information from our bus service provider in relation to travel on school busses and use of Opcal Cards.
Thank you.
__________________________________________________________
From TransDev
Dear Principal/School Transport Coordinator,
As your local school bus operator, we wanted to start the year with a warm welcome and to reaffirm our commitment to work with you throughout the year to provide a safe, reliable and efficient service for your school community.
We understand that this time of year can be quite overwhelming for new students and parents and we want to help ensure a smooth transition when it comes to our buses. If you experience or receive feedback on our services, we encourage you to direct them straight to us so we can provide a swift and timely response.
We are committed to working closely with our schools to deliver safe, reliable and efficient service for our school communities.
To ensure a smooth transition, we will have Transdev staff on site at various locations throughout the first few weeks to troubleshoot any issues that may occur.
At this time of year, we also remind our drivers to ensure that no child is left behind or refuse travel, as we know it may be the first time some students are using buses independently. We are also prepared in the event of overcrowding with standby buses ready to respond if needed.
The start of the school year is also a perfect opportunity to remind students of the importance of carrying a valid Opal card and using it correctly and we need your help to achieve this.
We have found that the common reasons students don’t tap on are:
§ They do not hold an Opal card and have never applied for it (largely because They are ineligible/live too close to the school),
§ They have lost or forgotten their Opal card but have not replaced it,
§ They might have a valid card, but don’t see any reason to tap on and off,
§ The driver does not enforce it/ask them to TAP ON,
§ Or due to insufficient funds on their Child/Youth Opal card.
Every time a student TAPS ON and OFF, they are counted on our service – when they don’t, they are invisible. Without accurate patronage data, Transport for NSW have the option to withdraw low patronised services.
We found that with onsite assistance, we were able to significantly improve the number of students tapping on. We have been assisting drivers by asking students to line up with their Opal cards ready and gave priority boarding to those with a valid card. Those without were spoken to and reminded to have a valid Opal card for their next journey. Our drivers are also expected to ask students to TAP ON when they board.
While we can provide adhoc support upon request, we rely upon your assistance to help us manage Opal compliance. We understand that not every school has the capability to provide staff to assist with bus monitoring, but we appreciate any assistance that you can provide.
Your assistance, as well as the contribution of your students, parents and guardians helps us ensure that we provide you with the appropriate level of service, and we thank you for this.
To help you, we have produced an information guide for Schools and one for distribution to Parents (available on our website). This brief flyer explains the importance of TAPPING ON and OFF and what part we can all play in helping to improve overall compliance.
By providing information about appropriate Opal card use and benefits, we hope to reduce the number of non-compliant students – as continuous low TAP ONS/OFFS mean that our services appear underutilised and are at risk of being modified, reduced, withdrawn or redirected to parts of the network that show a higher demand.
Should you have any queries or issues with your school services, our School Engagement Team is more than happy to meet with you to discuss how we might be able to work together. Please feel free to contact us on 02 8700 0555 or on tdnsw.schools@transdev.com.au
Thank you and all the best for the 2020 school year!