Dáil Éireann debate -
Thursday, 8 Jun 1995

Vol. 454 No. 2

Adjournment Debate. - County Galway School Transport.

Mr. N. Treacy

I am grateful to the Chair for allowing me to raise the school transport service available to families in Caraun, Caraunbeg, Caraunmore, Crosse and Cloonyconaun in my constituency whose children attend the local New Inn national school. I tabled a parliamentary question last week which was answered by the Minister for Education yesterday. She stated that families have a reasonable and adequate level of transport service available to them. I dispute this and on behalf of the local parents, I do not accept it.

The children have a limited transport service even though they have return school bus tickets. In the mornings they are collected at various points along the school bus route and have a satisfactory service. Everyone readily accepts that. However, on their return from New Inn national school the service is not satisfactory. The children are collected at the school and transported to Ballyfa junction even though they have return tickets which states they are to be set down at the Rathally-Cloonyconaun junction. As this is a dangerous junction the gardaí have instructed that the children are to be desposited at Ballyfa junction which is north of the junction aforementioned.

All I seek in the interests of the children is rather than leave them at Ballyfa junction, which is also dangerous, they should be left at Caraun Road junction which is westward of the Ballyfa-Loughrea Road. The children would be within visual distance of their homes and could walk the rest of the journey.

The children are collected at various points, including some of their homes, in the mornings and taken to school. As regards the journey in the evening, the distance I am talking about is 700 metres. The gardaí have instructed that the original deposit point is too dangerous but the children are left at a junction which is also dangerous. Children in urban areas avail of the normal bus service to go to school. The Department of Education pay Bus Éireann £25 million annually for the services provided in urban areas. I am speaking about rural Ireland and it is entitled to the same treatment, within reason. I am asking for a decision to be made in favour of the children and for the transport division of the Department to make an arrangement with Bus Éireann, which is ready to provide the service if instructed to do so, to return the children safely to the Caraun Road junction. The parents could then rest assured that the State was discharging its duty towards these lovely young children.

Minister of State at the Department of the Environment (Mr. Howlin)

I apologise for the absence of the Minister for Education who is presenting the Estimate for her Department before an Oireachtas committee this afternoon.

One of the Minister's areas of responsibility is to ensure the safe transportation of 166,000 primary and post-primary pupils throughout the country. She also has responsibility for ensuring that the State gets the best possible value for the money it spends on the provision of the service on which, in the current year, approximately £39 million will be spent. This figure includes approximately £4 million which Bus Éireann receives in charges from pupils who are liable for them.

The main policy aim of the school transport scheme is to facilitate equality of access to primary and post-primary education by providing transport to enable children who might otherwise have difficulty in doing so, attend school regularly.

In the organisation of school transport services, all routes are planned to ensure that, as far as possible, every eligible pupil has a reasonable standard of service, from the point of view of timetable and distance from the route, while at the same time, ensuring that all vehicles are fully utilised in the most efficient manner.

As a rule, primary school transport routes are planned so that no eligible child will have more than 1.5 miles to travel to a pick-up point. Pupils living off the main route of a service are generally expected to make their own way or be brought to convenient pick-up points along the main route. Home pick-ups were never envisaged as part of the scheme as the cost of providing such a service on a nationwide level would be prohibitive.

The scheme, which is operated by Bus Éireann, on behalf of the Department, is examined on an ongoing basis to ensure that safety standards are maintained. All routes are examined with regard to the suitability of the roads for the various types of vehicles used. Safe set-down, turning and pick-up points are carefully selected, always with safety in mind. In the planning of routes, road conditions, traffic hazards and all other aspects of safety are considered.

The position in this case is that the pick-up point in the morning is different from the set-down point in the evening. Most of the children are picked up at home or at Caraun Cross in the morning. This is due purely to the fact that they are on the driver's route when he is heading from base.

This concession was agreed on an incidental basis and is subject to review from time to time in the light of the number of pupils in the area offering for transport and provided that no extra State cost is incurred in accommodating them. I should also point out that this facility could be withdrawn in the event of the driver being changed at any stage in the future.

The set-down point which is at Rathally Cross is approximately one mile from the childrens' homes. This is considered to be a reasonable and adequate level of service in the context of the general operation of the scheme. With regard to the safety aspect of this set-down point, Bus Éireann has advised that the road is not considered to be any more dangerous than other similar ones throughout the country.

As the children involved already avail of a reasonable level of service and as Bus Éireann, which has an excellent safety record, is satisfied as to the safety of the set-down point, the present arrangement is the most that can be offered.

It would, therefore, not be open to the Minister to direct the transport division and Bus Éireann to make any new arrangements to further accommodate the children in question.