Students unable to present their bus passes will not be turned away from public transport, Victoria Pearman, the Ombudsman for Bermuda, has clarified.

With fares rising at the start of this month, Ms Pearman said she had contacted the ministry to encourage “fair and reasonable enforcement”, noting that the requirement to show a pass had been loosely enforced.

Bus and ferry charges increased under legislation approved by Parliament last month, and a spokeswoman for the Department of Public Transportation at the time said that students unable to produce a bus pass would be required to pay full fare.

Ms Pearman requested extra time for parents to obtain replacements for lost passes, and said the ministry had confirmed that bus drivers had been instructed for the time being not to deny schoolchildren without passes.