Two Cyprus school bus routes resume after vandalism, with guards and CCTV planned

Cyprus’s transport ministry announced that two suspended school bus services, one in Nicosia and one in Larnaca, would resume on 23 September after vandalism and safety concerns disrupted journeys. Its agreement calls for guards or conductors, buses equipped with CCTV and supervision by parents’ representatives in the first days. For families who had faced cancellations, the immediate change was the return of transport; whether the safeguards are working on each route remains unverified.

The ministry identified the affected services by city in the reviewed announcement. It did not establish their route numbers, stops or schools in the available material, so families cannot use this announcement alone to identify a particular bus. The agreement followed talks on 22 September involving transport and education officials, the chair of parliament’s transport committee, parents’ organisations and operator Cyprus Public Transport.

What the agreement provides

According to the ministry, guards or conductors were to be placed on the affected routes. Representatives of parents’ associations were also to supervise them during the first days after the restart. Those measures address what happens aboard the buses while the services operate; the published accounts do not independently establish who was assigned to each journey or how long the added supervision will continue.

The ministry said only buses fitted with CCTV would serve the two routes. It presented the cameras as a way to deter further incidents and record them if they occur. The announcement sets out that requirement, but the reviewed reporting does not document camera operation on individual buses or show whether the measure has reduced incidents since the restart.

Why reliability matters to families

Cyprus Mail reported that an earlier September suspension of a route serving villages in the Larnaca district followed disorder and damage to seats, with similar incidents reported in Nicosia. Parents’ associations objected to repeated cancellations and said hundreds of students and families had faced serious inconvenience. The reports establish the scale of their concern, though they do not identify how many pupils used either of the two services restored on 23 September.

Reporting published by KNEWS on 17 September described repeated cancellations in parts of Larnaca. It said parents had sometimes had to find transport at short notice after a scheduled school bus did not run. The Larnaca Federation of Secondary School Parents and Guardians told KNEWS that disruption affected hundreds of students across the district and called for safe, consistent operation of agreed routes. That district-wide account provides context for the families’ complaints, rather than a count for the two restored services.

KNEWS also reported that the federation acknowledged concerns about misconduct on some buses but opposed removing transport from everyone on a route because of the behaviour of some passengers. The ministry’s stated approach reflects that distinction: address incidents involving individuals while preserving access for other pupils. How consistently operators can maintain that balance will depend on the measures put into practice, which the published accounts have not yet assessed.

A recurring dispute and a scheduled review

The problem predates this school year. Cyprus Mail reported that Cyprus Public Transport considered cancelling some Nicosia and Larnaca school routes in 2024 because repeated vandalism made repairs costly. The same outlet reported that the transport ministry said in 2025 that parents would be held accountable if their children engaged in delinquent behaviour aboard school buses. Those earlier episodes help explain why parents are asking for a lasting answer to cancellations, beyond this week’s restart.

The ministry scheduled a broader meeting for 28 September to examine the agreed safeguards and wider school transport safety issues. Its event notice set the meeting for 15:30 Cyprus time and statements for 16:30. No outcome is established in the available reporting. The outstanding questions are whether the announced supervision and CCTV were put in place on both services, how long they will remain, and whether the review leads to further decisions on keeping routes running.