Mobility Justice, Safety Concerns, and Resilience in School Transportation Among Rural Students in Selected Districts of Morogoro region in Tanzania

Despite increasing policy attention to education access and road safety in Tanzania, the daily mobility experiences of students in rural secondary schools remain underexplored, particularly from the students’ own perspectives. This study examined learners’ views on safety concerns and their recommendations for improving school transportation and mobility justice, as prerequisites for achieving Sustainable Development Goals 4.2, 3.6, and 11.2. Focusing on rural public secondary day schools, the study investigated daily travel conditions, safety risks, wellbeing, and educational participation. Using a qualitative approach, including surveys, interviews, and observations across selected schools in three districts of Morogoro Region, the study captured students’ experiences of school-route safety, walking distances, road infrastructure, and transport regulation. Findings reveal that students are aware of mobility risks and demonstrate resilience; however, structural constraints, weak institutional support, and uncoordinated enforcement heighten vulnerability and compromise learning engagement. Students’ recommendations emphasize the need for safe pedestrian pathways, regulated transport, improved roads, and proximity-based school placement. By integrating students’ voices with a Mobility Justice perspective, the study underscores the need for coordinated, rights-based, and context-specific interventions to ensure equitable access to education for rural and economically disadvantaged learners. The study contributes empirical evidence that centers students lived experiences in debates on transport safety, a perspective often overlooked in rural education and mobility research, and recommends institutionalised cross-sector policy coordination, dedicated financing, and enforceable standards for school transport provision and safety.