Diesel is up 80% this year. In the Western Cape, 71,000 children's school transport is at stake.
Bus operators who carry pupils for the provincial government say they are running at a loss. A one-day strike left nearly 22,000 children without transport, days before final exams.
Cape Town — A dispute over fuel costs between South Africa's Western Cape education department and the small bus operators who carry children to school could disrupt transport for up to 71,000 pupils, Daily Maverick reports.
Nearly 22,000 pupils were affected when operators went on strike on Tuesday. The rest could follow if no agreement is reached.
The price of diesel
Diesel cost R17.69 a litre in January. By Wednesday it was R31.80, a rise of 80%. Operators say the contracts they signed cannot absorb that.
"We cannot continue operating indefinitely at a financial loss while fuel and other operating costs continue to rise," the Western Cape branch of the SA National Small Bus Operators Council said.
The department spends R698 million a year carrying more than 71,000 pupils every day. Its spokesperson, Bronagh Hammond, said that "any form of diesel relief has to be considered in terms of budget affordability".
Who is hit hardest
Children in rural areas and on farms have the most to lose. Some of them depend on the meals they get at school. Final-year pupils begin their examinations next Tuesday.
The problem is not limited to school buses. The South African National Taxi Council is negotiating with the government over fuel costs, and has held off raising fares for now.
This report is based on reporting by Daily Maverick.
