- piavan-thurenhout
- Jul 23
- 3 min read
Updated: Sep 3
Why are bus places more limited this school year?
We have faced a high demand for transport services for the new school year and our bus services are limited by spatial constraints. Below is an overview of our current bottlenecks.
Morning Busses
Except for the Riedberg Line, all morning busses are currently full.
Afternoon Busses
Here is an update from 29.08.2025 on our afternoon bus capacities
| Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday |
13:20 |
|
|
|
| A1, O1, W1 |
15:20 | A1, O1, W1 | A1, O1, W1 | A1, O1, W1 | A1, O1, W1 | |
16:25 | A2, O2, W2, R2 | A2, O2, W2, R2 | A2, O2, W2, R2 | A2, O2, W2, R2 | A2, O2, W2, R2 |
17:30 | A3, O3 | A3, O3 | A3, O3 | A3, O3 |
FULLY BOOKED NEARING FULL CAPACITY
Why has my registration taken so long to process?
There are several reasons why registrations have taken longer than usual to process this school year, despite our team working overtime and weekends-
· Our transport coordinator was unexpectedly suffered health issues and we did not have a substitute to cover all of her duties in her absence.
· Our team ensured the busses were maintained though any applications were unable to be processed in her absence.
· The EuroKids team is extremely short staffed and undergoing massive internal (online application) and external (building works) improvements.
How are bus places allocated?
We prioritise our processing of applications the following way -
1. Changes to existing parents’ applications and addition of siblings
2. Waiting list from the previous school year
3. New applications (on a first come first served basis).
Why can’t capacity simply be increased on the busses?
In the afternoons we have officially 3 bus spaces at the ESF. Despite additional safety challenges, in 2023 we made exceptions in the afternoon to incorporate 4 busses (addition of a smaller Riedberg line) and continue to do so. More busses are not physically possible to fit on the school grounds.
This is due to the turning circle of the bus, concrete island and a tight gate. We are currently exploring every option to increase capacity in future.
Will I receive a place if I am on the waiting list?
We receive cancellations and changes on a daily basis. September is the time with the most cancellations for specific Transport due to Secondary students receiving their timetables. We are unable to give a timeline or guarantee that everyone receives a place on the bus though our team will update you as soon as a space becomes available. In the meantime, we have listed some cooperation partners who have extensive experience with bringing children to and from the ESF.
Why is the online application not fully functional?
The ESF and EuroKids services are unique. There are no electronic application systems on the
market which can accommodate such a diverse range of services and exceptions as we have.
No other European school allows regular bus changes or integrates all services in their systems.
Whilst maintaining services, we have spent the last 5 years working with a software
company, developing our current system which is used to integrate both PA Membership
and all services and communications. We have prioritised the integration of Childminding services this year
Why are temporary bus changes/switches limited?
EuroKids averages between 100-150 bus change requests from parents each week. Our electronic application system is currently unable to process temporary switches and changes for Transport, though we are working to develop this. To ensure the safety and comfort of the children and avoid mistakes, these manual changes need to be communicated online by 12.00 on Thursday the week before the requested change via the bus change request form. A simplified internal communication of a single parent change request is illustrated below -
Why is it taking so long to receive a response?
Our team is currently receiving substantial parent mails each day in addition to phone calls. We have a backlog of enquires due to our Transport coordinator’s absence through illness. We apologise for our delayed response and are working around the clock to ensure that we get back to parents as soon as possible. Thank you for your continued support and understanding through these exceptional times.
