Pat Buckley (Cork East, Sinn Fein)
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156. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the reason persons (details supplied) are unable to access the school transport scheme to attend a school. [20953/17]

John Halligan (Waterford, Independent)
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School transport is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department.

Currently almost 116,000 children, including some 12,000 children with special educational needs, are being transported in over 4,000 vehicles on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country covering over 100 million kilometres annually.

The purpose of the Department's Post 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 education centre. 

Children are eligible for transport where they reside not less than 4.8 kilometres from and are attending their nearest education centre as determined by the Department/Bus Éireann, having regard to ethos and language.

In relation to school transport provision, ethos relates to religious ethos and is in the context of provision for minority religions.