Mr. Ray Hernan:

I thank the Chairman for her invitation to me and my colleagues to address the committee and deal with matters arising.

Bus Éireann administers the school transport scheme on behalf of the Department of Education and Skills, subject to its policy and instructions. I believe we provide the State with an efficient, effective, safe and reliable school transport service that carries almost 116,000 schoolchildren every day of the school term on 4,500 vehicles travelling over 6,500 routes that serve 3,000 schools. Bus Éireann is one of the largest supporters of rural Ireland, with over €123 million being paid in 2016 to 1,300 school transport contractors nationwide. This provides thousands of jobs in communities across the country and makes Bus Éireann one of the most experienced school transport service providers and managers internationally.

The delivery of the school transport scheme is complex, but its purpose is simple in supporting access to education. More than 40 million individual journeys are made by schoolchildren under the scheme annually. It is a classic public private partnership where more than 90% of the vehicles used every school day are provided by private operators on a network planned and co-ordinated by Bus Éireann in compliance with rules and guidelines set by the Department of Education and Skills. The operation of a safe school transport service provided in an efficient and effective manner is the highest priority for Bus Éireann in its management of the school transport scheme.

Bus Éireann operates three separate schemes on behalf of the Department, each with its own distinct criteria, under the umbrella of the national school transport scheme. They are the primary school transport scheme, the post-primary school transport scheme and the school transport scheme for children with special educational needs arising from a diagnosed disability.

In the past decade in particular, the school transport scheme has expanded dramatically in terms of vehicle numbers as the number of services provided under the scheme increased from 1,700 contractor vehicles in 1998 to almost 4,100 today. In 2016 a record number of 410 new services were introduced by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department of Education and Skills, which is equivalent to an average of more than two new services every school day, the vast majority of which were for children with special educational needs. At the same time, the number of Bus Éireann school buses providing services has reduced, from 537 in 2009 to 381 in 2016, a reduction of 30% in daily commitments. Contractor services have replaced these vehicles and all newly sanctioned services are opened to public tender by Bus Éireann.

In 2011 a revised tendering process was introduced for the provision of contracted services. Under the revised process, 100% of existing contracted work is subject to tender at least once in every five years on the basis of an average of 20% per year. Successful operators under this process are awarded a five-year contract. The tendering process allows Bus Éireann to achieve the procurement objectives of value for money, access to contracts for all interested parties, transparency on how contracts are awarded and equality of treatment. It is also in line with Government policy where the expenditure of public funds is concerned. Between 2009 and 2016, the cost to the Exchequer of providing school transport services declined by €4.5 million to €154.8 million. During this period the number of daily services increased by almost 1,800, or approximately 40%. Further savings are projected to be achieved in 2017-18 following the implementation of the Labour Court's recommendations agreed to by Bus Éireann staff in May this year. It is important to note that the scheme is administered by Bus Éireann on a cost recovery basis only.

Bus Éireann manages the school transport scheme impartially and in a uniform fashion nationally on behalf of the Department of Education and Skills and does not have unilateral discretion to make local decisions that may be inconsistent with national policy.

The eligibility criteria that must be satisfied by students who wish to avail of the scheme is set out under the guidelines of the scheme and implemented accordingly by Bus Éireann as required by the Department. Catchment areas for school transport purposes were abolished by the Government under the post-primary scheme changes announced in the 2011 budget, which indicated that from the 2012 and 2013 school year, the use of the catchment boundary system would cease for all new post-primary children. Eligibility for all new children entering post-primary school transport is now on the basis of the nearest appropriate post-primary centre, having regard to ethos and language. Existing arrangements remained in place for existing post-primary pupils at he time of these changes for the duration of their schooling.

With special needs requirements, the principle of tailoring school transport services where possible and where economically feasible to meet the individual needs of children carried under this scheme is applied not only where children in wheelchairs are concerned but to the transport needs of children attending the wide range of special schools and classes we serve under this scheme in conjunction with the Department. We currently utilise over 2,000 vehicles every day to provide services on some 2,300 routes for approximately 12,000 children with special educational needs, the vast majority of which provide services on a door-to-door basis.

My comments are a brief overview of the school transport scheme, which is a very complex undertaking for us, but one which Bus Éireann has been immensely proud to deliver on behalf of the Department of Education and Skills. We have been operating this scheme and carrying the children of the State for 50 years as of this year, and we are passionately committed to providing this service for many years to come. I take this opportunity to thank all the members for the opportunity to address them today and I am happy to deal with any questions in due course.