Classes are starting for more and more students in Lower Franconia. This means that the school buses are always full. Soon there could be a lack of space to keep your distance.
Little by little it means for all students in Bavaria: back to class. Due to the corona pandemic, special hygiene and clearance rules apply there. But many students come to class by bus or other public transportation. At the Schonungen secondary school, the situation on the school bus on the line between Schonungen and Gochsheim caused horror among the parents. The students had to sit and stand close together. There were no gaps. The situation has now relaxed there. But what about other buses in the region? We asked around.
The situation in Würzburg and the entire district is still relaxed, says Ullrich Fröhlich, Managing Director of the Mainfranken Transport Association (VVM). A look at the city’s trams and buses confirms this assessment. According to the VVM, only 14 percent of the pupils are currently going to school. “As soon as more classes take part, the situation will be different,” warns Fröhlich. Then it would no longer be possible to guarantee all passengers the minimum distance of 1.5 meters in public transport. “Even if we had twice and three times as many buses, that would not be possible,” says Fröhlich. Since the bus travel industry is idle, there is currently the possibility to use other buses to strengthen the fleet. Nevertheless, the capacities are limited.
Distance is not a requirement
The Würzburg district office confirms that there have been no overcrowded buses in the district so far. The main reason for this is that in the area of Allgemeine Personennahverkehrs GmbH (APG), which operates numerous bus routes in the district, the normal timetable has been back for two weeks. Press spokeswoman Dagmar Hofmann emphasizes that the buses are “in full power and capacity”. And that although so far only a fraction of the students have been taught again. However, in school buses as well as in public transport across Bavaria there would be no obligation to comply with the distance rules. That is also not possible, says Hofmann. Because then only a maximum of eight students could travel on a bus. “It is therefore particularly important that the students wear a mouth and nose cover.”
Photo: Anand Anders
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In the district of Schweinfurt, too, the situation at the Schonungen secondary school seems to have been an isolated case so far. Uta Baumann, spokeswoman for the district office, has reported that a larger articulated bus has been running on the route in question for almost two weeks. So far, there have been no problems in other schools. For example, on the bus routes between Schweinfurt and Rannungen and between Niederwerrn and Oberwerrn, the pupils had a row of seats to themselves. Anita Metz, owner of the company Metz Omnibusse from Grettstadt (district of Schweinfurt) reports. In order to avoid overcrowded buses, the district office in Baumann has regularly determined the current number of schoolchildren since the Easter holidays and passes them on to the transport company.
Low utilization in Main-Spessart
The situation is similar in the neighboring counties. In Main-Spessart there is also no cause for concern, according to the bus company. The buses of Hermann Hock GmbH in Steinfeld-Hausen, for example, have so far only been used to twelve to 15 percent, says managing director Franz Hock. Even on the more frequently used lines, there were never more than 20 people on a bus at the same time. The students are also disciplined and keep their distance, he says. Kathrin Grasmann, Managing Director of Grasmann Reisen in Hafenlohr, reports something similar: “Everything is fine with us.” The bus companies are obliged to report higher school numbers to the district office so that more buses may be used, according to Grasmann.
Problems with increasing number of students
In the district of Kitzingen, too, the school buses have not yet been fully utilized, according to the district office. As in Würzburg, however, it would no longer be possible for all passengers to maintain the recommended minimum distance if the number of students increased. Using more buses is also not a solution, said spokeswoman Corinna Petzold. “There are not enough buses nationwide and even fewer additional drivers.”
From Roland Danzberger’s point of view, the behavior of the students also plays a decisive role when it comes to the minimum distance. “About half of the children are reasonable,” says the bus operator from Volkach (district of Kitzingen) about his experiences in the past few weeks. At the moment, because of the reduced number of schools, it is still possible for everyone to keep a sufficient distance on his buses. “But we can’t do more than announcements either,” he says. After all, there is no obligation to distance in public transport.
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