Transport minister: arrival schedule for bus fire extinguishers by afternoon

Minister Alexis Vafeades said on Wednesday that he expects bus companies to inform him by the afternoon about when fire extinguishing equipment for their vehicles will arrive.

On Tuesday, he said that a three-member committee of experts has been established to evaluate the various available systems which have been submitted to the government for potential use.

The committee also evaluated proposals submitted by bus companies, and on Wednesday Vafeades said that the committee approved most of the companies’ proposals.

“Yesterday the competent committee had reviewed and approved all four companies’ proposals. The good news is that they include equipment that can be brought in by plane, which means its arrival will be shorter, but the final news we’ll know by noon,” he said.

He noted that the situation remains the same with the school buses. “We are waiting for the approval of 29 buses of a subcontracted company, which have an automatic fire extinguishing system, but a certificate of good operation had to be submitted. Once we have that we will allow them to enter traffic,” he said.

The minister clarified that until the mechanisms are introduced, the 570 buses will remain immobilised. He added that another 21 buses have arrived recently for the intercity routes, and these are expected to be registered and put into service on Wednesday or Thursday.

However, regarding the major problems with school buses and the basic service in Paphos, Vafeades said that he believed there would only be an improvement with the arrival of the equipment.

On Tuesday, the education ministry said the total number of school pupils impacted by the shortage of buses was 3,000, or around eight per cent of total school pupils on the island.

This is around half of the figure seen on Monday.

Education Minister Athena Michaelidou said student safety was of top priority and worth the temporary inconvenience resulting from the buses being pulled.

Schools and commuters descended into chaos on Monday, after more than 500 buses were taken out of service amid safety fears with parents and workers complaining of the inadequate warning which left many unable to make alternate arrangements.

Around 6,000 students were affected with hundreds turning up late or missing school, while in Paphos no buses at all were in operation.