Amman: The cabinet, led by Prime Minister Jafar Hassan, approved the commencement of the first phase of a groundbreaking school transportation project on Tuesday. This initiative, a partnership between the government and the private sector, marks the first of its kind in Jordan and aims to tackle transportation challenges faced by students in the kingdom. The project seeks to provide an integrated school transport system for public school students at no cost, thereby significantly impacting students and the educational process.
According to Jordan News Agency, the initial phase will be rolled out in the Southern Badia regions, serving 60 schools across the governorates of Karak, Tafila, Ma'an, and Aqaba. The government has plans for a gradual expansion of the service to cover all governorates, with a special emphasis on the Central and Northern Badia regions. Set to be implemented at the start of the next academic year in August 2026, the first phase will span two years and is expected to benefit approximately 8,000 students in the Southern Badia.
This phase involves the deployment of 120 modern buses equipped with monitoring systems, tracking devices, and cameras. These buses will be linked to an electronic application that allows parents to track their children during their commute to and from school. Additionally, the project is poised to generate 220 jobs for drivers, technicians, and maintenance workers, who will receive specialized training tailored to the project's requirements.
The agreement for the first phase, costing approximately JD1.32 million and funded by the treasury, is slated for signing in the second half of April. A consortium comprising Singaporean, Chinese, and local companies with experience in similar projects in Qatar and Oman will supply the buses and execute the project.
This school transport project aligns with government efforts to develop a modern transportation system across the capital and governorates by expanding regular transport projects and the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system.
In related developments, the government is gearing up to launch the second phase of the inter-governorate transport project in mid-June, following the success of its initial stage. This expansion will introduce seven new routes to enhance connectivity between Amman and the governorates using 180 buses equipped with smart transport systems, offering a daily capacity of 13,500 passengers.
The new routes in the inter-governorate project include lines connecting Amman to Tafila, Ma'an, and Ajloun, as well as Irbid to Zarqa, Zarqa to Mafraq, Jerash to Irbid, and Jerash to Mafraq. These initiatives coincide with the ongoing expansion of BRT routes within the capital and between Amman and other governorates. Since operations began in 2021, over 64 million users have utilized the BRT network, with more than 24 million passengers recorded in 2025 alone.
Last year, the government inaugurated two new BRT routes linking the capital to Madaba governorate and Al-Balqa Applied University, adding to the existing routes connecting Amman to Zarqa and those operating within the capital city.