Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
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94. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if vehicles that have been significantly modified, for example, a vehicle originally intended for 53 seats that has been fitted with 70 seats are eligible to apply for the school transport scheme; and if so, if there are specific vehicle testing standards they must meet. [11210/19]

John Halligan (Waterford, Independent)
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School transport is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department. There are currently over 117,500 children, including over 13,000 children with special educational needs, transported in over 5,000 vehicles on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country covering over 100 million kilometres annually.

The type of vehicle required for use on School Transport Scheme services is determined by the specific capacity requirements for each route and the roadways that the vehicle will be expected to travel on.  It is also determined by the individual requirements of the child involved, as is the case in relation to the provision of transport for children with Special Educational Needs. 

Bus Éireann has confirmed that in relation to vehicle testing standards, all large public service vehicles operating in the state, must meet the minimum statutory requirements of the Road Safety Authority’s Commercial Vehicle Roadworthiness test and are subject to roadside inspection by the Authority to ensure that they have a current roadworthiness certificate at the time of roadside inspection.  Each vehicle must also have a valid Public Service Vehicle (PSV) licence issued by a PSV Officer of An Garda Síochána following inspection. This inspection is particularly relevant in the case of any proposed modifications to vehicles. Both of these legal requirements are verified by Bus Éireann before any vehicle is permitted to be added to the nominated fleet of any contractor seeking to provide services under the School Transport Scheme.   In addition to the statutory requirements, Bus Éireann arranges for additional examinations of vehicles operating under the School Transport Scheme – which are both targeted and random. These additional quality assurance checks are carried out by an independent agency on behalf of Bus Éireann. 

All operators successfully awarded contracts to operate School Transport Scheme services by Bus Éireann must meet their contractual obligations set out in respect of vehicle safety, safety inspections and maintenance systems.