Michael McNamara (Clare, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for coming into the Chamber to take this Topical Issue matter.

As the Minister is aware, there are two types of people who benefit from bus transport. There are those who are determined to be eligible and those determined not to be eligible and who receive a concessionary ticket. As restrictions have been introduced, a squeeze has come onto people with concessionary tickets. From correspondence I have received into my office, much of which I have relayed to the Minister’s Department, it appears that any and every excuse is being used not to grant people tickets or to determine that they are eligible.

In one example, I refer to a family that lives in Broadford, which if one looks at a map is more or less equidistant between Killaloe and Tulla. There are schools in Killaloe, and Tulla and indeed in Scariff, and this family is more or less equidistant between the three. In this particular family of seven members, four of the children went to Tulla with no problem whatsoever, leaving three children. Of the three children last year, two of whom were told that they were eligible to get a ticket to Tulla and one was told that the person was not eligible but could have a concessionary ticket. The child did not challenge this and got onto the bus and this child and siblings went off to school to Tulla. This year the family have been told that none of the children are eligible and that they all must get concessionary tickets. The reason they have been told this is that Tulla is 16 km away and Killaloe is 18 km away by the normal road that the bus takes. There is also however what is called or considered a gap road which is a very beautiful road, and if the Minister ever wants to come mountain biking in Clare I would highly recommend this as it has fantastic views. One would want to have very good control of one’s bike and to do this in summer because the road is exceptionally steep. Nobody and no school bus would drive that road. In fact there are parts of the winter when nobody can drive this road. I spoke to the council engineer, who generally does not exaggerate, and he told me this morning that when trees - because this road runs through forestry - fall on this road, the council tries to clear it as fast as possible. It is prone to flash flooding because it is very steep and is on the side of a mountain and the highest point in County Clare, which is the top of the Sliabh Bearnach mountains. When the road floods, as it does throughout the winter, the council tries to clear it as soon as possible. That road, which is simply not drivable by a school bus or indeed by a car for much of the winter, where one would need a 4x4 vehicle at best to traverse it, is the basis upon which Bus Éireann has said that these pupils are not eligible to go to Tulla but must go to Killaloe. This simply does not make sense. It may be in accordance with the terms and conditions from Bus Éireann which I have here, which state how distant eligibility is determined:

Distance eligibility is determined by Bus Éireann by measuring the shortest traversable route from the child's home to the relevant school/s. The shortest route is used for determining eligibility only, it may be either a pedestrian or vehicular route.

A pedestrian route is being used to determine which bus one should get. If children could go to school through the fields the parents would not be looking for a bus to bring them to school. It is simply ridiculous. I ask the Minister in her answer not to pawn this off on Bus Éireann because the school transport scheme is operated by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Minister’s Department. Her Department pays for it and is ultimately responsible for education. I commend the Minister again on getting the schools back but the way the buses have operated leaves much to be desired. These parents found out five days before the school was to open that their children were no longer entitled to a ticket to go to Tulla, as did a number of other families in Broadford. Instead they would have to make their own arrangements. Carpooling is what is happening now, which means that children from different families are sharing cars by necessity. That is hardly what the Department of Education and Skills desires to bring about in these times when all of these precautions are in place. I look forward to the Minister’s reply.

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