There are a few things you need to know about travelling to school by public transport in Queensland. For the best information, visit TransLink's School travel info page. https://translink.com.au/travel-with-us/school-travel/school-travel-info

Yes, bus passes can be used on both school and regular Translink services.

What is the difference between a full pass and a part pass?

Full passes are printed in black and allow the holder to travel free of charge from home to and from school. These passengers are fully subsidised by the government.

Part passes are printed in red and require the holder to pay a top-up fare. These passengers are only partially subsidised by the government as they are not attending their nearest school.

Holders of part passes are required to pay a top-up fare in cash to the driver in exchange for a paper ticket. (A go card cannot be used to pay the top-up fare.)

These passengers are only partially subsidised by the government as they are not attending their nearest state school. The top up fare is based on the extra distance travelled beyond the nearest school.

The amount of the fare is printed on the pass as a single, daily and weekly amount. If purchasing a weekly, for best value it is best to do so on a Monday morning as the ticket cannot be rolled over into the next week. The weekly is sold at a discounted rate; 10 rides for the price of 8. For daily or weekly fares the ticket must be kept and shown in conjunction with the bus pass.

Providing the student has not moved schools or home, a replacement bus pass can be purchased from your bus driver at a cost of $20 (payable in cash only).

The receipt can be used as a temporary bus pass until the replacement pass is issued to your school for collection within five working days.

Students with an existing bus pass need only re-apply if their home address has changed, they are repeating a grade, or they are going to a different school in the New Year (this includes moving from Primary to High School).

Automatic renewal of some bus passes is a result of a data matching process and relies on the accuracy of information held, all or partly, by Department of Transport and Main Roads, Centrelink, Surfside Buslines and the school your child attends. Please ensure that your child’s details are identical and current with each of the above named entities.

At the end of each school year, please ensure that the current pass is retained to be used in the new school year until the new pass is issued (by mid-February)

For those needing to reapply, to ensure that a new pass is available for the commencement of each school year, please submit new applications prior to the end of November.

Parents/Guardians, remember it is your responsibility to ensure your child is responsible, confident and equipped to travel to and from school on a bus.

For safety reasons, please take the time to familiarise yourself with your child’s bus number and route for both morning and afternoon school services as they may differ.

Please visit https://www.tmr.qld.gov.au/buscode for a complete copy of the Code of Conduct document.

We thoroughly investigate all reports where a child has missed their service.

If a service has not stopped for your child, they are still on the network and you know their current location, call us on 13 12 30 to make a report and we will investigate urgently.

If your child is still on the network and you are concerned for their safety, please contact the police in the first instance.

We will need to know:

• date of the incident
• time
• age of your child
• route your child was waiting for
• location where your child was waiting for service
• where your child was going
• best contact number for the child's parent/guardian/teacher.

If your child is no longer on the network or has changed their travel plans, please advise us of the incident by calling 13 12 30 to make a report and we will conduct an investigation.