A total of 761 school buses have passed mandatory inspections and are ready to operate at the start of the new school year, while 40 that failed the checks will not be used to transport pupils, the House transport committee heard on Thursday.

Road transport department (TOM) representative Giorgos Loukas told MPs that 442 buses had been inspected and approved by July, with a further 319 passing the necessary checks since August.

Around 600 buses are required to provide school transport services.

According to the TOM, buses whose inspections are still pending will not be included in the school transport fleet until they receive the necessary approval.

In addition to technical inspections, checks covered fire safety, driver permits and other required documentation.

Further unannounced inspections will be carried out in September, while ten supervisors will continue conducting surprise checks throughout the school year.

Following the meeting, Transport Minister Evie Tsolaki said she was pleased that representatives of the bodies involved were satisfied with the measures taken ahead of the resumption of school transport services.

Regarding recommendations made by the audit office over school bus safety, Tsolaki said the issues raised had been addressed through efforts by her predecessor Alexis Vafeades, the ministry and TOM.

House transport committee chairman and Elam MP Sotiris Ioannou said the 761 buses cleared to operate school routes had not merely undergone formal inspections.

He said they had undergone private inspections over the past three months as well as state inspections during 2025 and 2026, and held the necessary documentation, including fire safety certificates.

Disy MP Giorgos Karaiskakis said the committee had received assurances that no bus failing to meet all safety requirements would be allowed to transport pupils.

Akel MP Valentinos Fakondis said the discussion had taken place against the backdrop of shortcomings highlighted in a report by the audit office.

He stressed that the priority must remain the safe transportation of pupils on all routes, while also calling on pupils to respect drivers and buses.

Representatives of bus companies operating in Nicosia, Famagusta, Larnaca and Limassol told the committee they were ready for the start of the new school year, saying intensive efforts had been made to complete inspections during August.

Association of tourist coach owners president Pambos Kapnos said the 40 companies providing school transport services were ready to begin transporting pupils.

Kapnos, however, raised concerns over misbehaviour on school buses, citing incidents involving property damage, the removal of safety equipment and the injury of a driver. He called for more effective measures to tackle the problem.

Pancyprian confederation of parents’ associations of state secondary schools president Loizos Konstantinou said only a small proportion of the approximately 25,000 pupils who use school buses breached the rules.

He suggested identifying pupils responsible for incidents, including through CCTV or the deployment of supervisors, and introducing measures such as requiring parents to cover the cost of damage caused.

Pupils’ representative Despina Kyprianou raised concerns over passenger numbers on some buses, saying that some carried considerably more passengers than they were designed for.

Loukas explained that some buses were licensed to carry both seated and standing passengers. These were used on specific routes within towns, while buses providing seats for all passengers were used for longer journeys.

The audit office had in June found that more than one third of school busses failed state inspections with Famagusta ranking the highest failure rate at 76 per cent.

Following publication of the report, then transport minister Alexis Vafeades pledged that all school buses would be inspected before the start of the new school year in September.

“The goal is to inspect all the buses, to remove from service those which have not been properly maintained, and to place in service only those which meet the specifications,” he said at the time.

“There is no room for it not to be completed by September. School bus services will be completed and will operate safely.”