Thousands of pupils entitled to free school transport could be charged £1 a day under controversial Government proposals.

Ministers are considering allowing local authorities to scrap free transport for children living more than three miles from their school.

The move has already been strongly criticised by MPs, including Wantage Conservative MP Robert Jackson, who said it would only add to traffic congestion as parents jumped in the car instead.

Oxfordshire County Council -- which provides free travel to 9,500 pupils -- has rejected an offer by the Government to introduce the scheme without public consult- ation.

Tony Crabbe, Oxfordshire's executive member for schools, said: "This is not something at the moment we would want to do.

"I can't see any advantages and it's not a big issue as far as I am concerned."

In a report to Parliament, the Education and Skills Select Committee warned that parents would not pay for their children to travel on unreliable and dirty buses.

The report says charging would raise little cash for councils and could even spark costly legal challenges.

It also says exempting only pupils who receive free school meals is inadequate because many poorer parents do not claim their food entitlement.

The "statutory walking distance" -- which guarantees free bus travel for pupils living more than three miles away, or two miles for under-eights -- could then be scrapped in all areas.

Education Secretary Charles Clarke believes local education authorities need cash for bus services and to encourage cycling by pupils living closer to schools, many of whom are currently driven.

The MPs accepted new ideas were badly needed to tackle a "crisis" in school transport, with the increase in pupils driven to the gate reaching "critical proportions".

One suggestion put forward by the committee was for pupils to be bribed to walk or cycle to school, with "discounts on local activities or tokens".

Debra Little, whose daughter Lisa, 12, uses the school bus every day from Charney Bassett to King Alfred's Community and Sports College in Wantage, said she would pay the £1 charge if it meant keeping the service.

She said: "The school bus service is a lifeline for us because I don't drive and there is no public transport in our village. If we didn't have the school bus, Lisa couldn't get to school."

She added: "I'd rather not pay but if it meant the difference between having the school bus service and not, then I would pay the £1.

"The service would have to be reliable and safe, with the children checked on and off. Sometimes Lisa has missed the bus home because classes have run over and I have had to ask friends to collect her."

Neil Darlington, education officer for admissions and transport at Oxfordshire County Council, said the Government's aim was to reduce the number of youngsters travelling by car and to increase the number of people travelling by bike, foot or bus.

"We are already encouraging walking buses so that parents find it acceptable and safe for their children to walk to school," he said.

"In Oxford, we have a very good system of cycle routes and a good public bus network."