Wodonga parents say an unexpected change to a school bus service could force primary school children to walk a kilometre unsupervised and wait for 45 minutes just to access an alternative.
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Families have been told town children next year will not be able to use the 616 country bus, ending a practice that had gone on for years but did not align with the Victorian government's school bus program policy.
Wodonga Primary School parent Jemma Strauss believed about 103 children could be affected, mostly from Wodonga and St Augustine's primary schools.
Fellow Wodonga parent Diana Maden said a suggested option for children to walk to the High Street water tower and wait for a town bus would involve crossing major roads and greatly increase travel times.
"At the moment the children are supervised, hop on the bus, interchange in a supervised area and go home and it takes 30 minutes, this would take two hours," Mrs Maden said.
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Miss Strauss said many parents only recently learned of the change and struggled to get further information.
"Nobody is taking responsibility, nobody has an answer on who can fix this for us either, everybody points the finger at somebody else and it's a merry-go-round, we just go around and around in circles," she said.
A Department of Transport spokeswoman told The Border Mail a solution was being sought.
"We know how vital this service is to the community, which is why we're working with Dysons to ensure there continues to be a local school bus service in 2020," she said on Monday.
An Education Department spokesman said the department was working with Wodonga Primary School and the Department of Transport to ensure students would have access to school transport services in 2020.
The Dyson Group was also contacted for comment.
Miss Strauss said none of the parents expected a free or door-to-door bus service.
"Why not create a bus service with a suitable route to get all these children home safely that we pay for?" she asked.
Mrs Maden's children had caught the 616 bus for four years, with no indication previously it was a rural service not meant for students who lived in Wodonga.
"We really rely on this bus," she said.
"We really feel powerless and that's really frustrating."