Three schoolbuses operated by Monmouthshire County Council have been taken off the road following a safety spot-check.

A pupil from Monmouth Comprehensive School who uses the service, but did not want to be named, raised concerns to the Beacon about the safety of some of the yellow schoolbuses under Monmouthshire County Council’s responsibility, after hearing that three buses were removed from use following safety concerns.

The yellow schoolbuses are used by hundreds of pupils for transporting children to school and for trips.

When these concerns were brought to Monmouthshire County Council, a spokesperson said: “Safety of our fleet is our priority. Ongoing servicing and maintenance across our fleet is regularly carried out.”

“On this occasion, the DVSA carried out a random check on five vehicles and three were found to have defects,” the spokesperson continued. “We are in the process of having these vehicles serviced before they return to the road.”

As three schoolbuses were recently taken off the road, the county council has recently taken delivery of three new buses costing £245,000 each which have been adapted for wheelchair access.

The new fleet is being used primarily for transporting school children but will be available to hire.