Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael)
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We have to judge what is efficient for a bus. Originally the buses were 50-seaters, and over the years, as the route gets smaller or the number is reduced, the bus is reduced to a minibus. Generally, minibuses carry more than ten people. Sometimes there must be a cut-off. Parents receive a grant, and in some cases they pool it to pay for another mode of transport for a group of people. We must run a system. We do not have an endless budget. I wish we did, but taxpayers will not endlessly fund it and there must be a cut-off point. At this stage the magic number is ten, and it has been well researched that this is the most efficient. Children are not left on the side of the road and it is unfair to say they are. I should clarify that it is probably wrong to say "free transport," because it is subsidised transport. Most people still have to pay a contribution; they do not pay the full cost. Efficiencies state that it does not pay - and it is not right - for the State to use taxpayers' money to fund a bus for fewer than ten people. This is why the decision was made.