For a large share of Pakistani families, the school van is not a choice but a necessity: the school is too far to walk, the school bus does not serve their street, and a private van — a Suzuki Bolan, Carry Daba or similar vehicle run by an independent driver — is the affordable option. These vans do essential work, and many drivers are careful, experienced and trusted by families for years. But the private van sector is also where school transport safety is weakest: overloading is common, seat belts are rare, vehicle fitness is unchecked, and parents often have no idea what standards to demand because nobody has ever told them. This private school van safety standards guide gives parents the standards, and gives schools a role in enforcing them.
The first principle is that cheap must not mean unsafe. A van fee that is hundreds of rupees lower than every other van on the route is usually lower because the driver carries more children, skips maintenance, or drives without proper documents — and the saving is paid for in risk to the children. Parents should compare vans on safety first and price second, and schools should help by publishing the standards below to every family that uses private transport. A school cannot control private vans directly, but it can refuse to let a van that clearly violates safety rules pick up children from inside the campus, and it can warn parents when a particular operator is known to overload. That influence matters, and schools should use it.
The Reality of Private Vans
Private vans operate in a gap: they are not school buses, so they escape the stricter expectations schools place on their own fleets, and they are small enough that enforcement is sporadic. A typical van is designed for a limited number of passengers, but on a school route it may carry half as many again, with children sitting on laps, on the floor, or three to a seat built for two. Doors may be sliding doors that children can open from inside while moving. Windows may be blocked by bags. There is usually no attendant, so the driver is simultaneously driving, managing children, and collecting fees. None of this is inevitable — it is the result of parents not knowing what to check, drivers not being asked, and schools staying out of a matter they consider "private".
The comparison parents should make is with the school's own transport standards. A school bus has a defined capacity, a trained driver, a route list and an attendant; a private van should be judged against the same ideas, scaled to its size: a fixed number of children, a licensed driver, a known route, and a responsible adult in charge. Parents choosing between a van and a school bus can weigh the trade-offs with the help of private van versus school bus comparisons, but whatever they choose, the van itself must meet minimum standards. The sections below set those standards out plainly, so any parent can check them in ten minutes before signing up.
Overloading and Seat Belts
Overloading is the most dangerous and most common van problem, and it is also the easiest to check: count the children and count the seats. Every child must have their own seat, with no child on another child's lap, no child on the floor, and no child standing. A van that carries more children than seats is overloaded, full stop, whatever the driver says about "just one extra" or "they are small". Overloading matters for three reasons: in a crash, unrestrained children become projectiles and injure each other; an overloaded van brakes and steers worse; and in an emergency evacuation, a packed van traps children inside. If a driver offers a discount for overloading, refuse it — the discount is priced in children's safety.
Seat belts are the second check. Many vans have belts fitted but removed, tucked under seats, or broken — and children are never told to use them. Parents should ask the driver to show working belts for every seat, and should teach their own child to belt up every ride, even if other children do not. Where a van genuinely has no belts, parents should raise it collectively: a group of parents asking one driver to fit belts carries far more weight than one parent alone, and belt fitting is inexpensive compared with the van's monthly earnings. Schools can reinforce the message by teaching seat-belt habits in road safety lessons, so children themselves ask for belts and refuse to ride unbelted — peer pressure, for once, working in safety's favour.
Overloading Rule
Driver Licence and Conduct
Ask to see the licence. It is a reasonable request, and a legitimate driver will not be offended — drivers who refuse to show a licence, or who drive on a learner's permit or a car licence that does not cover the vehicle, should not be carrying children. Beyond the licence, ask about experience: how long has the driver run this route, does he know the school's timings and gate rules, and does he have a mobile phone number parents can call? A driver who is reachable, known to the school gate staff, and stable on the route year after year is a far safer choice than a new face every term. Parents should also agree on conduct rules with the driver: no mobile phone use while driving, no speeding, no music at volumes that prevent hearing, and no unauthorised passengers.
Speed is the conduct issue parents most often ignore, because they never see it. Ask other parents on the route, and ask your own child: does the van driver speed, overtake recklessly, or race other vans? Children notice, and they will tell you if you ask directly and without anger. Agree with the driver that the van follows the school's timings rather than racing to fit extra trips — a driver who tries to run two school trips in the time for one will speed, overload or both. Where the school maintains a list of private operators, as part of its transport management, parents should check whether their driver is known to the school and whether any complaints have been recorded against them.
Vehicle Fitness Checks
A van's fitness can be judged in a five-minute walk-around, and parents should do it before the first ride and again each term. Check the tyres: tread visible, no bald patches, no cracks in the sidewalls, and a spare tyre present. Check the brakes by asking when they were last serviced, and by noticing whether the van stops smoothly on a test ride. Check the lights: headlights, brake lights and indicators all working, which matters most in winter fog and evening trips. Check the doors: sliding doors must latch securely and must not be openable by small children while moving — a child lock or a driver-controlled lock is the standard. Check the interior: seats fixed firmly, no loose metal edges, a first aid box on board, and a fire extinguisher where required.
Documents matter as much as mechanics. The van should have valid registration, token tax and insurance, and the driver should be able to show them. Insurance is not a formality: if a child is injured in a van without insurance, the family's medical costs have no coverage to claim against, and the legal position becomes a long, painful dispute. Parents should also confirm the route and timing in writing — a simple WhatsApp message from the driver stating the pickup time, the route order, and the fee, kept by the parent, prevents the common disputes about changed timings and surprise fee increases. A driver who keeps proper documents and a written agreement is a driver who takes the business seriously, and that seriousness is itself a safety signal. The same document discipline applies to school van fee arrangements, where written terms protect both sides.
The Parent Checklist Before You Pay
Before paying any advance fee, run through this checklist with the driver, in person, at the van. One child per seat — counted, not promised. Working seat belts for every seat. Valid driving licence, shown to you. Valid registration and insurance, shown to you. Tyres, brakes, lights and door locks checked by eye. A fixed route and pickup time, confirmed in writing. A phone number that answers. No mobile phone use while driving, agreed. An attendant or older responsible student for young children, where the route includes small children. If any item fails, do not pay until it is fixed — and tell other parents on the route, because a driver who loses three families over safety will fix the problem faster than a driver who loses none.
After signing up, keep checking. Ask your child weekly: how many children rode today, did the driver speed, did everyone wear belts? Visit the van once a term unannounced. And build a parent group for the route — a small WhatsApp group of the van's families — so problems are shared immediately and the driver hears one collective voice rather than isolated complaints. If a driver repeatedly violates the standards, escalate together: first to the driver, then to the school, which can bar the van from campus pickup, then to the traffic authorities with a joint complaint. Parents who demand standards protect not only their own child but every child on the route, including the children whose parents never thought to ask. That collective demand is how an unregulated sector slowly becomes a safe one.
AI Help: Muse AI
Muse AI is Meta's personal AI assistant, available in the Muse app. A parent can ask it to turn the van safety checklist into a short message for a route WhatsApp group, or to draft polite questions to ask a van driver about licence, insurance and seating before signing up. Join Muse with invite code LTGSWD — in the Muse app, go to Settings > Redeem token and enter the code.
Disclosure: LTGSWD is the author's Muse invite code.