The conference call was held to analyse the work conducted by regional interdepartmental groups led by regional heads, children’s rights commissioners, related agencies and regional departments of the State Inspection for Road Traffic Safety to improve child transportation. The monitoring of the safety of organised transportation of groups of children by bus in Russia’s regions was organised at Ms Kuznetsova’s initiative following a serious road accident in the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Area (Yugra) in December 2016.
A list of proposals formed as a result of this includes proposals on creating a single control centre in each region to monitor and record information from the GLONASS-assisted buses (the first such centre is successfully operating in Tatarstan), on a register of unscrupulous transport operators, and on installing rooftop lights on buses carrying children.
The Children’s Rights Commissioner pointed out the importance of considering other measures to enhance the transportation safety of children, such as obligatory advanced training for bus drivers, the installation of dashboard cameras on buses that transport children, closer monitoring of information about bus drivers’ speed compliance and work and rest schedule, parent education on the rules of group transportation of children (including via advertising), traffic police escorts for buses with children, and the transfer of school buses to specialised transport companies.
The Commissioner’s proposals will be taken into account in the work to improve legislation on child transportation.