Offenbach: Crowd and full buses despite reinforcements

• fromAgnes Schoenberger

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The SPD also wants to use coaches for schoolchildren at peak times in order not to expose passengers to an “unnecessary risk” from the corona virus. Head of Department Sabine Groß is skeptical.

Crowds at bus stops and buses: On the first day of school after the autumn break, the usual picture prevailed in Offenbach yesterday. On the way to school, thousands of young people came closer in full buses than many would have liked because of a possible infection with the corona virus.

The Offenbacher Verkehrsbetriebe (OVB) use amplifier lines in the morning and in the afternoon, which are supposed to relieve the traffic in school. Even so, the vehicles are overcrowded on certain routes. In the summer it hadn’t been that bad, as many of the 15,000 students at secondary and vocational schools in Offenbach had switched to bicycles for fear of being infected.

With a view to the autumn, the SPD parliamentary group had therefore submitted the application to increase the capacity of the buses used at peak times, for example by renting coaches, and to equalize school hours so as not to expose passengers to an unnecessary risk of infection.

OVB reports bus requirement

The reason given was that since the resumption of regular operations in the schools in August, there had been untenable conditions in the OVB buses. The corona distance rules could hardly have been adhered to. After the magistrate had declared in the recent city council meeting that it had recognized the problem and wanted to examine state aid for more buses, the SPD withdrew its application.

Mobility Department Head Sabine Groß (Greens) had previously made it clear that OVB could no longer allow buses to run because it had neither enough staff nor vehicles. She does not consider coaches particularly suitable because the narrow doors make it difficult to get on or off quickly. The consequence would be “traffic jams” at the bus stops that are already heavily frequented.

According to her, the buses are only full for a short time, “but not yet overcrowded”. That would have resulted in passenger counts. According to Groß, the OVB has registered a need for five additional buses with the state. She said the country won’t support the city until the schools coordinate their starting times. A ministry spokesman, on the other hand, stated that rectifying the start of lessons was not a prerequisite for funding.

Discussions by school director Paul-Gerhard Weiß (FDP) with parents, headmasters and the school office about an equalization of the school hours have shown that some buses are “jam-packed” because the amplifier bus that was previously used is hardly used. “Sleeping ten minutes longer means a lot to teenagers,” he said.

According to the state education authority, some schools have coordinated in order to achieve an equalization. According to Weiß, however, the options are limited. It is difficult to start new classes at grammar schools because the upper levels have joint advanced courses. A change in one high school would also affect the others. The idea of ​​the country to equalize school times is more shaped by the situation in rural areas, said Weiß.

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