Exploring the use of Paratransit Services for School Journeys among Basic School Children in the Greater Kumasi Area

Abstract

How children perceive safety, convenience and other factors that influence the choice of mode for journey to school may be significantly different from an adult perspective. Understanding how children with different life experiences come to terms with day-to-day context and constraints in the journey to school has become an important topic that deserve critical attention. Using a pragmatic paradigm mainly through survey, focus group discussion (FGD), and observation, this study sought out to explore the use of paratransit services for school journeys among Basic School Children in Greater Kumasi Area. The study employed the simple random technique and sampled 123 pupil and as well used convenience sampling to sample an average of 12 pupil for three FGD‘s. The study revealed that parents are key players in the choice of paratransit modes for school journeys which may be influenced by their socioeconomic factors and the perception about these modes. The study also identified condition of mode, infrastructure, and driver behaviour as the major challenges faced in using paratransit modes for school journeys. Though road safety education is seen as a global tool for reducing road traffic crashes, findings from this study further revealed that only two subjects (Citizenship Education and Our World Our People) taught in basic school had content on road safety. In view of this, it is recommended that policymakers including Land Use and Spatial Planning Authority (LUSPA), and National Road Safety Authority (NRSA) should include children in planning their activities to better understand their travel needs. The study further recommends that Ghana Education Service (GES) should include road safety education at all levels in basic schools to reduce the number of road crashes