School van fares up to 40% higher in Islamabad and Rawalpindi

School van and private transport operators in Islamabad and Rawalpindi have raised monthly fares by up to 40 percent following the recent surge in petrol prices, according to reports by the Associated Press of Pakistan, ProPakistani and TechJuice. APP linked the price rise to tensions in the Middle East.

Parents said van owners are demanding an additional Rs 2,000 to Rs 4,000 per month. They said the increases were made unilaterally and without any regulatory oversight.

One mother, Sidra, told ProPakistani that her children's van driver raised the monthly fare from Rs 6,000 to Rs 8,000. The daily trip from G-10 to a school in F-7 takes about 10 minutes. She questioned the increase, noting that the government had announced a petrol subsidy for vehicles with engines up to 800cc.

Reports said many of the affected children live only three to five kilometres from their schools. Parents also said operators keep collecting the full transport fee during summer and winter vacations, and that they have no authority to challenge the charges.

Van owners give several reasons for the increases: higher petrol and CNG prices, vehicle maintenance costs, traffic fines and driver salaries. One operator said these costs made it hard to run vans at the earlier rates.

The same operator said parents overlook fuel costs, driver payments and commissions paid to schools when they estimate what operators earn. He maintained that operators had raised fares by only Rs 1,500, which he considered justified.

Parents are calling for better oversight of school van fares.