Vol. 496 No. 3
435 Mr. Penrose asked the Minister for Education and Science the steps, if any, he will take to ensure that children (details supplied) who are attending the convent secondary school, Kilbeggan, County Westmeath, have appropriate transport arrangements put in place which will permit the children along the route to be collected later and brought back earlier to their homes, particularly during the winter period; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22704/98]
In the organisation of school transport services, all routes are planned so that, as far as possible, every eligible pupil has a reasonable standard of service, while at the same time ensuring that school transport vehicles are fully utilised in the most efficient and cost-effective manner.
In order to achieve this, individual vehicles are generally required to operate a number of services to both primary and post-primary schools. This means that pupils are often required to make an early start in the mornings and to wait for some time in the evenings.
Post-primary school transport services are planned so that, as far as possible, travelling and waiting times do not exceed three hours daily. However, every effort is made to keep waiting times to a minimum.
In this case the school bus operates a trip to Kilbeggan and another post-primary centre. The arrangements for pupils on these services is currently under examination by my Deparment, and Bus Éireann has been requested to provide a detailed report. The Deputy will be informed of the outcome as soon as possible.
