Niamh Smyth (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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223. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if she will review correspondence regarding school transport (details supplied); if she will issue tickets for the children concerned; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [49373/25]

Michael Moynihan (Cork North-West, Fianna Fail)
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The School Transport Scheme is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department of Education and Youth.

Bus Éireann has advised that in recent weeks they issued tickets for school transport on bus services that had been secured for the 2025/26 school year. Unfortunately, a number of difficulties have arisen in having services in place for the start of the new school year in some localities with a small number of contracted services.

Bus Éireann further advise that this service has now commenced and that a ticket was issued to the pupil referred to by the Deputy on 2nd September 2025 for the 2025/26 school year.

For families who have been issued with a tickets on board one of these services affected, the Department is sanctioning an interim arrangement to assist with the cost of alternative arrangements until your service is in place.

This payment will be paid as an exceptional measure and will be calculated from the date the service was due to commence up to the date that a service in provided .

The interim grant for children on main stream services, the Exceptional Interim Grant (EIG), is linked to ticket holders and is paid for the number of days that children attended school from 25th August 2025 until a school transport service commences.

School Transport Section of my department will be writing to all families affected over the coming weeks, to offer the grants mentioned above.

Niamh Smyth (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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224. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if she will review correspondence (details supplied) regarding a school pick-up point; if she will address the concerns raised; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [49393/25]

Michael Moynihan (Cork North-West, Fianna Fail)
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The School Transport Scheme is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department of Education and Youth.

Bus Éireann is responsible for the planning and timetabling of school transport routes. 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.

Where practicable, and subject to considerations of cost and logistics, routes are planned to avoid an eligible child having to travel more than 3.2 kms to or from a pick-up/set down point or to have travel and waiting times in excess of 1.5 hours per day. Routes are planned on the basis of the locations of children who are eligible for school transport only.

Parents/guardians are responsible for ensuring that children are brought safely to and collected safely from Bus Éireann designated pick up and set down points.

Bus Éireann has advised that they are aware of the issue raised by the Deputy. The area is set to be assessed by the local bus inspector, and following this assessment, the affected families will be contacted directly.