Jonathan O'Brien (Cork North Central, Sinn Fein)
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1245. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if her attention has been drawn to the fact that Bus Éireann cannot go off-route to collect school children under the school transport scheme without the prior approval of her Department; the reason her Department will not accept any such application for re routing unless there is a minimum of ten additional pupils to be collected; that this means that the most newly approved primary school children in rural Ireland cannot be collected at home due to the small enrolment numbers; her views that this may be inadvertently discriminating against children from rural areas; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31145/15]

Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael)
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The purpose of my Department's Primary School Transport Scheme is, having regard to available resources, to support the transport to and from school of children who reside remote from their nearest school.

In general, children are eligible for transport where they reside not less than 3.2 kilometres from and are attending their nearest national school as determined by the Department/Bus Éireann.

A minimum number of 10 eligible children residing in a distinct locality, as determined by Bus Éireann, are required before consideration may be given to the establishment or retention of school transport services, provided this can be done within reasonable cost limits.

Bus Éireann is responsible for the planning and timetabling of school transport routes. Bus Éireann endeavours, within available resources, to ensure that each eligible child has a reasonable level of school transport service in the context of the Scheme nationally.

Where practicable, and subject to considerations of cost and logistics, routes are planned to avoid an eligible child having to travel more than 2.4 kilometres to or from a pick up/set down point or to have travel and waiting times in excess of 1.5 hours per day. Routes are planned on the basis of the locations of children who are eligible for school transport only.

Parents are responsible for ensuring that children are brought safely to and collected safely from Bus Éireann designated pick up and set down points.

The terms of the scheme are applied equitably on a national basis.