Jennifer Whitmore (Wicklow, Social Democrats)
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271. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the estimated cost of the provision of school buses each year to students in primary and secondary school; if her Department has carried out a costing on the provision of free transport to school children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [28588/22]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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School Transport is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department of Education. In the current school year over 121,400 children, including over 15,500 children with special educational needs, are transported on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country at a cost of over €289m in 2021.

The costs from 2011 – 2020 for transporting children on a daily basis to primary and post primary schools including children with special educational needs throughout the country is as follows;

The average cost of providing transport for a child to a primary or post-primary school is estimated at €1,000 per annum.  The average cost to provide transport for a child who requires Special Educational Needs transport is estimated at €9,000 per annum.  

In 2021, receipts from school transport charges amounted to approximately €12m (net of refunds issued arising from Covid related school closures).  If school transport fees were to be abolished and eligibility criteria remained the same, the cost of providing free transport to each child availing of school transport would be approximately an additional cost of €12m on the total cost of transport for the year. This figure is based on current patterns of school transport uptake and could vary depending on eligibility and demand.

School Transport is a demand led scheme and services are planned annually based on the number of eligible pupils who apply and pay on time. The closing date for receipt of payment for school transport for the 2022/23 school year is 29th July 2022.  The final number of children to be accommodated on school transport services for the 2022/23 school year will not be known until after this date.