Niamh Smyth (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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242. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if there are changes planned to a bus route (details supplied); if this bus route will be retained; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12384/18]

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

Currently over 116,000 children, including almost 12,000 children with special educational needs, are being transported in over 4,500 vehicles on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country covering over 100 million kilometres annually at a total cost of almost €190 million in 2017.

The purpose of the 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 school transport if they meet the distance criteria and are attending their nearest school.

School transport services are reviewed each year to take account of children who no longer require school transport and new applications for the following school year. The closing date for receipt of applications for school transport for the 2018/19 school year is 27 April 2018. Decisions on the retention or establishment of new services cannot be finalised until this information is received and assessed by Bus Éireann.

The terms of the School Transport Scheme are applied equitably on a national basis.