Ann Ormonde (Fianna Fail)

If the Senator interrupts me, he must allow me to interrupt him when he speaks. There are improvements in the service. The number of pupils required to establish and maintain a primary school service has been reduced from ten eligible pupils to seven. That is positive. The threshold for the post-primary service has been reduced to four eligible pupils, provided a minimum of six fare paying pupils use the service. The time spent travelling has been reduced from three to 2.5 hours. These improvements must be put on record and the Minister deserves credit for her sensitivity and commitment in detailing how we can further improve the service.

Escorts are now provided for special needs students and taxis, minibuses and wheelchair adapted vehicles will be provided to transport handicapped children to school. This is a huge improvement from five years ago when this was not available. Let us be fair when making our contributions to this debate. The total number of vehicles in the school transport fleet has increased from 2,418 in 1998 to over 3,300 in 2006, another positive change.

The core issue is safety on the buses and how to provide it. There is no room for complacency. I would be the first to reinforce that point. It must be high on our agenda to ensure parents have confidence in the service. I welcome the flashing lights pilot scheme. It is a great scheme and I hope it will be widely introduced.

Is there proper co-ordination between the local authorities, the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform and the Department of Transport? I can give an example that highlights my concerns about this. I was travelling down the country about three weeks ago and happened to pass a community school in a rural area between 3.30 p.m. and 4 p.m. I waited for approximately an hour in my car as I watched cars zigzagging here and there around a school bus. There should have been a garda and school warden on duty. There should be some regulation because the situation was inviting an accident to happen.

The Minister cannot manage that situation from her office. There must be co-ordination in every school area so the local authority is aware of where there are problems on stretches of road. The school buses, therefore, can be made aware of the dangers by the local authorities. The Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform should be made aware of what is going on by the local Garda station. The Minister cannot deal with this alone but must bring in backup support. I am sure she will do that.

A great deal of work is being done but safety is the priority on everybody's agenda. There is a feeling, with regard to some buses, that maintenance is not up to standard. I hope the Minister will examine this issue. I have seen these rickety old buses and have wondered, when driving behind them and seeing smoke coming out of the back, if they are all right. Perhaps they are — they are probably better than my car — but one does not get a good feeling, particularly when there are many children on the bus.

I wonder if the Minister is putting a huge responsibility on bus drivers to deal with teenagers of 14 and 15 romping around the bus. She has introduced the seat belt requirement and changed the three to two seating. However, is it possible to control the teenagers? Perhaps the Minister would give her views in that regard. It is one of my concerns. I urge the Minister to continue the good work. A great deal is being done and I am confident she will get it right.