Bus fees in some schools to climb by up to 5% as operators cite fuel and service costs
As UAE families prepare for the new school year, some parents are facing an additional expense before their children have returned to the classroom, which involves higher school transport fees.
Some parents at GEMS Winchester School, Dubailand, using the STS Group’s bus services were informed that transport fees for the 2026-27 academic year will rise by 5 per cent. In an email to parents, the company said the adjustment noted, ‘the increased cost of delivering school transport services’ and was necessary to maintain the standards of safety, reliability and service expected by school communities.
The email also urged parents to re-register their children for bus services by July 24 to secure their seats for the upcoming academic year.
Dinesh Kothari, founder of Vice Chairman & Managing Director at Delhi Private School Dubai (DPS) weighed in and noted, “Last few months have been challenging times for schools. The fuel costs particularly went up steeply. However, Kothari said schools had tried to keep the increase as low as possible, with transport fees adjusted by between 3 per cent and 4 per cent for the new academic session.
“We are conscious of challenges faced by parents and trying to mitigate as best we can do,” he said.
STS Group, meanwhile, clarified that transport fees are not increased by a uniform amount across all the schools it serves.
“Transport fees are agreed individually between STS Group and each school, taking into account the agreed contractual arrangements and the specific operational requirements of each school,” the company said in a statement to Gulf News.
“There is no standard transport fee increase applied across all STS Group clients.”
The company said it remained committed to its long-standing partnerships with schools and to providing safe, reliable and high-quality transport services for students and their families.
For parents, however, the transport adjustment is another cost to factor into the annual back-to-school budget, alongside tuition fees, uniforms, books and extracurricular activities.
Kothari said schools remained aware of the financial pressures facing families.
“We hope coming year will be full of hope and better times under visionary leadership of rulers of UAE,” he said.
Source: Khaleejtimes
