More school buses are vital to encourage parents not to take their children to and from school by car, Witham councillors have argued.

Witham Town Council's community services committee was considering its response to a consultation exercise on free school transport being carried out by Essex County Council.

Council taxpayers currently foot the school transport bill for children aged under eight living 1.5 miles or more from their designated primary school, while those aged eight and over get free transport if they live two miles or more from the school.

Now the county council is asking what people think of an idea to change the qualifying distances to two miles or more for under-eights and three miles for those aged eight or over.

Even if parents living within the qualifying distance want to pay to send their children to school by bus, they are not guaranteed a seat on any school buses passing near their house, and have to rely on an informal arrangement of spare seats being available.

Members of the community services committee expressed their disappointment with the situation at a meeting last night, and voted to write to the county council setting out their view.

Dan Ezra (Lab, South Ward) said: "We should be trying to discourage from using their cars to take their kids to school, especially because of the dangers it creates outside schools."

And Phil Barlow (Lab, Chipping Hill and Central Ward) said: "To improve traffic flows across the county, one of the elements could well be the use of more school buses, as you have in America."

County councillors will decide on what qualifying distances should be for free school transport following the consultation exercise.

Published Tuesday, June 3, 2003