Written answers

Tuesday, 1 December 2020

Department of Education and Skills

School Transport

Photo of Rose Conway-WalshRose Conway-Walsh (Mayo, Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

425. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the status of school bus transport both in terms of ensuring all students have access to the services in addition to meeting the 50% capacity level advised by NPHET; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35806/20]

Photo of Norma FoleyNorma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

School Transport is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department of Education. In the 2019/20 school year over 120,000 children, including over 14,200 children with special educational needs, were transported in over 5,000 vehicles on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country covering over 100 million kilometres at a cost of over €219m in 2019.

The purpose of my Department's 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. Under the terms of the Post Primary School Transport Scheme, children are eligible for school transport where they reside not less than 4.8kms from and are attending their nearest Post Primary School/Education Centre as determined by the Department/Bus Éireann, having regard to ethos and language.

All children who are eligible for school transport and who completed the application and payment process on time have been accommodated on school transport services for the 2020/21 school year where such services are in operation.

The Department has been engaging intensively with Bus Éireann in regard to the logistics for the safe operation of School Transport Scheme services for the 2020/2021 school year on all school transport scheme services.

Based on the public health advice published in early July, and the updated advice received from the HPSC on 7th August and from NPHET on the 18th August, the Department has been planning for School Transport Scheme services for the 2020/2021 school year to fully operate, but with additional measures and hygiene requirements in place and with the rolling implementation of measures on post-primary services as required to provide physical distancing, using 50% of passenger capacity. The implementation of 50% capacity has been put in place where possible over the last number of weeks and over the coming weeks, Bus Éireann will be implementing 50% capacity on a rolling basis as soon as it is possible to do so on all remaining routes.

Government has agreed to provide the necessary funding to ensure that full implementation of the public health recommendation is achieved as quickly as possible on all post-primary services, including Special Educational Needs post-primary transport services.

Comments

No comments

Log in or join to post a public comment.