A BUS operator accused of “exploiting” and “ripping off” parents with its new school bus pass fees has defended the increase. 

Morebus's school bus charges for the new term have sparked outrage among some parents.

For one mother with two children at Parkstone Grammar, the new prices would see her pay £291.60 per child for the autumn term.

Morebus cited the extra resources required to run the school services and an increase in outlay on wages and fuel as factors for the fees.

The parent was so shocked by the new figure she contacted the transport company to flag what she believed was an error.

She said that she believes the same travel on a standard child or adult bus pass would be significantly cheaper.

The mother told the Daily Echo: “We are not expecting a free service, we do, however, expect a reasonable and transparent fee. It would very much appear that as Morebus has the monopoly over this market and as parents have a legal duty to send their children to school, this is being exploited.

“With the rising cost of living and pending recession, £600 a term is something that is absolutely unaffordable – especially when there are clearly cheaper options available to adults or university students or even children travelling, but not on a school bus.

“We are constantly being encouraged to use public transport – cut pollution - keep cars off the road, which is a great concept, however, if it is not affordable, what choice do parents have.”

The Daily Echo has been contacted by several other parents left concerned by the fees. 

Responding to their concerns, Morebus operations director, David Lee-Kong, said: “All buses in our fleet must be used for our commercial services during peak travel times - typically between 7am and 10am - to maximise their usefulness.

“However, most schools start between 8am and 8.45am, so they require buses at a time when we have none to spare. This means we require an extra bus in our fleet for every single school journey."

Mr Lee-Kong said school buses are only required for 190 days each year and for just three to four hours a day. This means to keep the service with its "significant extra resource" viable, the costs has to be recovered from a "relatively small number of passengers".

He also said grammar school bus passes could be used in zone A of their network and fares had been gradually increasing over the past three years since the council subsidy was withdrawn.

“In addition, we have faced a considerable increase in our outlay - including driver wages, fuel, and material costs," he said.

“In view of all this, we face a delicate balancing act - setting fares at a level that is realistic for us as a bus operator, and for our customers.

“These latest changes will help secure the continued operation of our school routes for the future, and will ensure pupils are able to travel to-and-from school on time.”