Michael Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent)
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251. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if she will address the case of persons (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [49277/22]

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 is responsible for the planning and timetabling of school transport routes on behalf of my Department. Safety of children travelling on the school transport services is of paramount importance to my Department and to Bus Éireann. Bus Éireann endeavours, within available resources, to ensure that each eligible child has a reasonable level of school transport service in the context of the scheme nationally.

Routes are planned so that, as far as possible, no eligible child will have more than 3.2 kilometres to travel to a pick-up point. Children are generally expected to make their own way, or to be brought to convenient pick-up points along the main route.

Bus Éireann has advised that pupils residing in the areas referred to by the Deputy are eligible for transport. However, in order to ascertain how far these pupils reside from the existing pick-up-point, Bus Éireann will require the names and address Eircodes of the pupil’s referred.

If the Deputy wishes to provide this further information to School Transport Section, my officials will furnish the details to Bus Éireann requesting a report on the matter. A further reply can then be furnished to the Deputy as soon as possible.