A school bus route serving villages in the Larnaca district was suspended on Thursday after incidents of vandalism and disorder left seats broken and damaged, the transport ministry confirmed.

Public transport director, Andreas Nikiforou, informed that initial warnings issued to students failed to stop such behaviour, with the situation having worsened the following day.

The company operating the route informed the ministry that a ‘safety issue’ had arisen, prompting the decision to suspend the service until those responsible are identified and excluded from future travel.

“For safety reasons, it simply cannot operate,” Nikiforou stressed.

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Nikiforou acknowledged that only “a small portion of students” were involved, and that the aim was to protect those using the service responsibly.

He said the incidents have been reported to police, with schools, the education ministry, transport authorities and parents’ associations also informed, though the culprits “have yet to be traced”.

Identification, he said, could come through “parents or the students themselves reporting incidents to school boards”.

In a statement, the transport ministry confirmed that checks on buses had been intensified for this school year, exceeding requirements set out in national legislation and existing contracts with providers.

It said safety depended not only on the technical condition of vehicles but also on conditions inside them, and that recent incidents of “vandalism and disruptive behaviour” posed risks to passengers and affected drivers’ concentration.

The ministry said damaged buses can be taken out of service for repair, and that limited availability of replacement vehicles and drivers sometimes makes temporary suspension unavoidable.

It urged parents to “reinforce expectations that students remain seated, respect drivers and fellow passengers”, and report any such incidents.

Education Minister Athena Michaelidou, speaking later in Limassol, countered the transport ministry’s decision, arguing that punishing all students for the actions of a few is not the solution.

“What is disturbing is that, for the sake of two or three cases, the name of all our children is being tarnished,” she remarked.

She drew attention to the fact that some 25,000 children use school buses daily.

She said she was in discussion with the transport ministry to find alternative solutions, including cameras to improve monitoring inside buses.