Alan Dillon (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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392. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the level of budgetary funding provided by the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform to support the 6,000 concessionary ticket holders in 2022 still without a ticket on the school transport scheme the immediate actions that will be taken to address this matter; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [48270/22]

Colm Burke (Cork North Central, Fine Gael)
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396. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the details of the way that additional funding for school transport that was announced in Budget 2023 will be spent; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [48391/22]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 392 and 396 together.

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

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.

As you are aware, in July 2022, Government announced funding for the waiving of school transport scheme fees for the coming school year as part of a wider package of cost of living measures.

School Transport ticket registration for the 2022/23 school year closed on 29 July by which time almost 130,000 applications/registrations were received for mainstream school transport. This figure includes 44,299 new applications as well as roll-overs from the previous school year.

There has been an increase in tickets allocated across all counties, with an increase of 18% in the number of tickets issued to eligible pupils compared to start of the 2021/2022 school year and an increase of 27% in the number of tickets issued to concessionary pupils compared to the start of the 2021/2022 school year.

The normal eligibility criteria of the scheme still apply.

Pupils at primary level are eligible where they live no less than 3.2 kilometres from and are attending their nearest primary school.

At post-primary level students who live no less than 4.8 kilometres from and are attending their nearest post-primary school/education centre are deemed eligible.

All children who are eligible and who completed the application and registration process on time will be accommodated in the 2022 school year. In addition, pending completion of the outcome of the full review of the School Transport Scheme, Temporary Alleviation Measures at post-primary level be continued for the 2022/2023 school year. Under these measures, which were initially introduced in 2019, transport will provided for post-primary pupils who are eligible for transport to their nearest school and are attending their second nearest school and who applied by the 29th April and registered for a ticket by the 29th July.

Any pupils/students who do not meet these criteria are deemed not eligible, or otherwise known as concessionary, applicants and are allocated a ticket based on the availability of a seat on when all eligible children have been catered for.

While numbers are still being finalised for the 2022/23 school year as Bus Éireann continue to process applications, a small number of on time applications are still in the process of being assessed.

Bus Éireann will continue to issue tickets as soon as extra buses and drivers are sourced and become available to provide transport for the higher numbers qualifying for the service. Regrettably, however, the unprecedented numbers of new applications and some constraints in supply of vehicles and drivers has led to some delays in issuing tickets.

As Bus Éireann process remaining applications and where additional services may need to be put in place for eligible children, any capacity on these services will be offered to concessionary applicants.

Following discussions with Minister McGrath and officials in DPER as part of the budgetary process some additional funding has been approved for the scheme which will allow officials in consultation with Bus Éireann to consider and evaluate where temporary additional capacity may be available.

The initial focus will be where families applied on time and who previously held concessionary tickets, to alleviate the impact of the increased demands on the scheme for those families.However, it is important to stress that this is subject to capacity considerations. Constraints in sourcing vehicles and drivers in certain areas of the country may also mean that it may take a number of weeks to explore solutions for additional capacity.

Alan Dillon (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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393. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills when temporary alleviation measures will be provided for children (details supplied) on a school bus route who are concessionary ticket holders; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [48317/22]

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

In July 2022, Government announced funding for the waiving of school transport scheme fees for the coming school year as part of a wider package of cost of living measures.

Ticket registration for the 2022/23 school year closed on 29 July by which time almost 130,000 applications/registrations were received for mainstream school transport. This figure includes 44,299 new applications as well as roll-overs from the previous school year.

Bus Éireann has advised that the child referred to by the Deputy who is attending the primary school referred to by the Deputy is eligible under the terms of the scheme, a ticket request was received for this child on 06^thSeptember 2022 and a ticket was issued to the pupil on 08^thSeptember 2022 on board a school transport service for the 2022/23 school year.

Bus Éireann also advise that the child referred to by the Deputy who is attending the post primary school mentioned is not attending their nearest post primary school/centre and is therefore not eligible for school transport under the terms of the school transport scheme. Bus Éireann further advise that an application for transport was first received for this pupil on 24/04/2018 for the 2018/19 school year and their application carried forward to up to and including the 2021/22 school year. This Family closed this pupils application on 14/09/2021 and no new application for transport has been received for this child for the 2022/23 school year.