Schools Information Hub

For Current School Timetables please click here.

School Excursions

Port Stephens Coaches have a dedicated schools division staffed by our friendly and experienced team who work tirelessly to ensure that your excursion runs smoothly and trouble free.  We have a very long and proud association with many schools, providing safe, efficient and cost-effective transport for all your transportation requirements.

Port Stephens Coaches offers full support to teachers planning day tours and multiple day excursions.  We understand that there is no one-size-fits-all when it comes to school excursions.  We will work with you to tailor-make an excursion specifically suited to your needs and budget.

We will plan and schedule your itinerary for any location.  We organise your whole excursion – from sourcing school-friendly accommodation and meals to booking venues.  Canberra, Bathurst, Snowfields, Blue Mountains, Mogo and Sydney are our popular destinations but we can take you anywhere.

Port Stephens Coaches can offer:

• A large range of vehicles to suit your needs and group size. Luxury 5-star coaches are equipped with air conditioning, seat belts, toilet and DVD. Sizes range from 18 – 74 seats. Wheelchair accessible vehicles are also available.
• Professional, experienced and friendly drivers with Working with Children checks and first aid training.
• Tailor-made itineraries.
• Friendly, knowledgeable and attentive staff who will listen and liase with you to put together a fun and educational itinerary that students and staff will long remember.
• Advice on where to stay and where to go.
• Free of charge travel for accompanying teachers.

Code Of Conduct

When completing an online application form for free travel, parents are required by the Department of Transport to read the Code Of Conduct before completing the form.

CODE OF CONDUCT FOR SCHOOL STUDENTS ON BUSES TO ENSURE YOUR SAFETY AND THE COMFORT OF OTHER PASSENGERS

View Transport NSW Online School Opal Card Application HERE.

View Student Codes of Conduct on the Transport NSW website HERE.

Students will

• Behave safely at all times.
• Respect the needs and comfort of other passengers.
• Behave appropriately at all times (eg no use of offensive language, fighting, spitting, placing feet on seats or throwing things in or from the bus).
• Protect bus property and report any vandalism.
• Show their travel passes or tickets to the driver on boarding and when requested.
• Only use the travel pass for its intended purpose.
• Maintain possession of the travel pass at all times.
• Follow the driver’s instructions about safety on the bus (eg instructions on where to sit).
• Adhere to the law that bans smoking on buses.
• Only eat or drink (other than water) on the bus with the written permission of the bus operator.
• Keep arms, legs and other parts of their bodies inside the bus.
• Only attract the attention of the driver in the case of an emergency.

School Opal Card can be used:

• On approved travel on school days between the student’s home and school;
• For travel between 06:30 and 19:00 weekdays (21:30 for TAFE school students

The school student transport scheme eligibility

• Be a resident of NSW;
• Be 4 years 6 months of age or older;
• Be an infant student; i.e. attending Kindergarten, Year 1 and Year 2 classes, irrespective of the distance from home to school; be a primary student (Year 3-6), and reside more than 1.6 kilometres (radial distance) from the school attended, measured on a radius from the centre of the school site, or 2.3 kilometres or more by the most direct practicable walking route to the nearest point of physical entry to the school;
• Be a secondary student (Year 7-12), and reside more than 2.0 kilometres (radial distance) from the school attended, measured on a radius from the centre of the school site, or 2.9 kilometres or more by the most direct practicable walking route to the nearest point of physical entry to the school;
• Be a TAFE student under 18 years of age at 1 January of the year of application and enrolled in a full-time course for a minimum of 20 hours a week, and is not employed, lives more than 3.2km from the college by the most direct practical walking route, and attends the college closest to their home where enrollment is available;
• Be enrolled at a registered day school;
• Be eligible for a free government education. Students who are not eligible for a free government education are not eligible for subsidised travel.

School Opal Cards enable a student to travel on:

• Mode(s) of transport most applicable for the student’s travel requirements; train or bus or both. For bus travel, cards are restricted to individual or a combination of bus operators.
• School days only.

For travel outside school hours or days a Child/Youth Opal card is available and provides concession fares and other Opal benefits.

Students with school travel passes this year will not need to apply for a School Opal card unless they are changing schools or their home address or moving from year 2 to 3 or year 6 to 7.

Those students who do not need to apply will have a School Opal card sent to their school for the beginning of the first term in 2016.

For new applications or for students with changing circumstances, the parents, guardians or students over 16 years are required to fill in a form online at www.transportnsw.info/school-students
After filling in the online application you print it off and take it to the school to endorse. Transport for NSW has the data online from the application and waits for the school to then endorse the application and will mail the School Opal card to the applicant’s home address.

• Parents/guardians of students deemed ineligible by their school or local transport operator may apply to the Department of Transport for a review of that decision.
• Parents/guardians of students deemed ineligible by their school or local transport operator may apply to the Department of Transport for a review of that decision.

• Students must abide by the Code of Conduct.
• School travel is only available between home and school for school attendance and is available on school days only.
• Passes are to be used for only one forward and one return trip per school day.
• Passes are not transferable and must be shown on demand.
• Travel by bus is subject to the conditions laid down by the Transport for NSW governing the carriage of passengers on public transport.
• No child will be denied travel in circumstances where they have lost or forgotten their subsidised travel pass.
• Journeys must commence and finish only at the points nominated on this application without a break of journey.

• You agree to the Department of Transport and its auditors contacting the school attended to confirm the details provided in this application from time to time.
• The Department of Transport reserves the right to withdraw subsidised travel:
  • if investigation shows the student to be ineligible. Following notification to the parent/guardian any issued pass must be surrendered to the school principal, or the bus proprietor, and subsidised travel cease forthwith.
  • subject to breaches of the Code of Conduct and following notification to the school and parents/guardians.

Term passes are available for students who are not eligible for free travel. To apply for a pass please visit https://apps.transport.nsw.gov.au/ssts/#/termBusPass

Parents or guardians should apply for a replacement School Opal card at www.transportnsw.info/school-students

Please click here for our Bus Safety Education Program