The news that De Lijn plans to cut back on student transportation to special educations schools starting in September has sparked a great deal of criticism and uproar from school principals and parents to ordinary citizens on the street and in parliament.

More than 200 bus routes are being eliminated because Flemish Minister of Mobility Annick De Ridder (N-VA) has asked the Flemish public transportation company to stay within the 139 million euros budget.

Critics accuse De Ridder of adhering too rigidly to budgetary targets and of diverting funds from het portfolio to Antwerp, her home turf – a claim she denies.

Flemish Minister-President Matthias Diependael (N-VA) now assures that responsibility for student transportation is shifting to their party colleague Zuhal Demir, the Minister of Education, even though she is not looking forward to having this hot potato passed on to her.

‘Not a cost-cutting measure’

According to Diependaele, this is not a cost-cutting measure, but rather a decision not to exceed the allocated budget. That position is certainly not shared by the opposition and two of the three coalition parties, who have reacted with outrage to the decision.

“Politics is about choices,” says Els Robeys (Vooruit). “It’s clear that the minister apparently wants to cut funding for student transportation, but not for money-losing airports. For us, the priority is vulnerable children.”

Does Robeys have a point? The fact is that Deurne Airport or Antwerp International Airport has indeed been operating at a loss for years and receives structural support from Flanders, even though it primarily serves business travelers and affluent passengers. School transportation, on the other hand, serves children with disabilities, often from vulnerable families who have no alternative.

According to figures from the PVDA party, the airport received 5.4 million euros in subsidies from Flanders, on top of the 8.1 million euros from the federal government.

For every passenger who lands or departs from Deurne, the airport receives 65 euros in government support. De Lijn, which admittedly receives far more subsidies, had to make do with just 5.71 euros per passenger transported in 2024.

School principals outraged

In any case, the stories some school principals are sharing about the impact of cutting bus routes are heartbreaking. “Many of our children have been spending far too much time on the bus for years,” says a school principal from Bruges in a statement to vrt.nws.

According to him, 5% of his students already spent more than three hours on the bus every day. 70% spend more than two hours on the bus, and the remaining 25% spend less than two hours. “Many children are overstimulated by the time they arrive at school.”

However, during her term in office, former Flemish Minister of Mobility Lydia Peeters (Open Vld, now Anders), together with De Lijn, expressed the shared goal that no student in special education should have to spend more than 90 minutes per one-way trip (i.e., a maximum of three hours per day) on the bus.

But it is also the timing of the communication that is causing concern for many schools. They fear that De Lijn will not present the initial draft plans until late, which makes them worry that it will be very difficult to get everything organized in time and to communicate with the parents involved.

Minister in Rimini

On Wednesday afternoon, there was a heated debate in the Flemish Parliament about the potential budget cuts. The notable absentee was Minister of Mobility Annick De Ridder. She was attending the Velo-City Word Cycling Congress in Rimini, where, according to her cabinet, she “positioned Flanders as one of the absolute pioneers of cycling policy in Europe.”

Fellow minister and part colleague Ben Weyts filled in for her. He stated that “De Lijn is in dialogue with schools and local governments” and “that absolutely nothing is final yet.”

This did little to calm the situation, and De Ridder’s policies came under heavy fire – for example, regarding how much money from her budget is being invested in Antwerp – from Deurne Airport and the work on the Oosterweel link to a 250-million-euro bicycle bridge.

Tough moment for De Ridder

De Ridder is known for her rigorous adherence to numerical targets and being someone who pushed through her agenda, despite all the criticism. For example, she recently pushed through an additional 35.5 million euros in cuts at De Lijn, on top of the 11 million euros that must now be saved on student transportation in special education, completely ignoring the recommendations of the regional transportation councils.

In a response to vrt.news, De Ridder noted that budget cuts are never pleasant. “I’d much rather be able to wave a big bag of money around, but the budgetary reality is what it is. People may view a balanced budget as an abstract goal, but it does indeed affect people.”

“It’s about not passing on bills to our children and grandchildren today. Every euro we don’t have to pay in interest can be invested in schools, healthcare, mobility, and safety. We’re cutting costs and getting our finances in order precisely so we can continue to invest, including in the future.”

But the fact that just yesterday, the Court of Auditors, in a new report, tore apart the way the minister uses her Integrated Investment Program (GIP) to allocate billions for infrastructure projects on roads, tunnels, or bike paths obviously does not work in her favor.

According to the Court of Auditors, there is “no long-term vision, the priorities are not objective, and there is no consistency in how budgets are estimated.”

Not a quick fix

And how did Flemish Minister-President Matthias Diependaele – a fellow party member of De Ridder – react to all the commotion, especially given that it was agreed upon during the formation of the government that student transportation would be fully placed under the Education Ministry, but that Demir was not willing to accept that without a fight?

“I spoke with Education Minister Zuhal Demir a few weeks ago, and she is willing to take over responsibility for student transportation,” Diependaele said in a statement, a point that Demir also confirmed in parliament, thought her remarks were neither enthusiastic nor encouraging.

“If that responsibility is assigned to me, I’ll certainly take it on, but you don’t solve the problem by passing it from one minister to another.” At the same time, she also pointed out that a thorough reform requires consultation between the departments of Education, Welfare, and Mobility, and that this will take time.