Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

As the Deputy is aware, the school transport scheme is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department. It is important to look at the figures. In the most recent school year, more than 121,400 children, including more than 15,500 children with special educational needs, were transported on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country. The cost of the scheme in 2021 was €289 million. It is an important service for families and children.

The purpose of the scheme, having regard to available resources, is to support the transport to and from school of children who reside at a remote distance from their nearest school. In July 2022, the Government announced funding for the waiving of school transport scheme fees for the 2022-23 school year as part of a wider package of cost-of-living measures. School transport ticket registration for the current school year closed on 29 July, by which time almost 130,000 applications were received for mainstream school transport. This figure includes 44,299 new applicants as well as rollovers from the previous school year. More than 125,000 tickets have already issued for the 2022-23 school year. At the start of the previous school year, approximately 103,600 children were carried on mainstream school transport services. This means in the region of 21,400 additional places have been created, which is a 20% overall increase. Compared with the start of the 2021-22 school year, there has been an increase of 18% to date in the number of tickets issued to eligible pupils and an increase of 27% in the number of tickets issued to concessionary pupils.

Bus Éireann will continue to process applications and issue tickets as soon as extra buses and drivers are sourced and become available to provide transport for the higher numbers qualifying for the service. Regrettably, however, the unprecedented numbers of new applications for the current school year have led to some delays in the issuing of tickets. The normal eligibility criteria for the scheme still apply and tickets continue to be allocated in line with those criteria. Pupils at primary level are eligible if they live no less than 3.2 km from, and are attending, their nearest primary school. At post-primary level, students who live no less than 4.8 km from their nearest or next nearest school are eligible.

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