Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 28 May 2013
67. Deputy Patrick O'Donovan asked the Minister for Education and Skills if he is satisfied the traversable route policy being applied to the allocation of school transport is being applied fairly; if he is satisfied that roads which are not passable by buses or coaches are not being included for measurement purposes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25043/13]
View answerFrom the outset of the scheme, the measurement of the shortest traversable route from a child's home to the relevant education centre has been used to determine whether or not a child qualifies for school transport based on the distance criteria. To clarify, for measurement purposes this may be via either a pedestrian or vehicular route and the shortest route between home and school is not necessarily the route that the school bus takes. Bus Éireann Inspectors located throughout the country conduct these distance measurements and a GIS distance measurement solution may also be used to confirm the distance involved.
In cases where the distance to qualify is marginal or is in dispute, vehicles fitted with calibrated measuring devices which measure the distance down to the nearest metre are used in order to establish the exact distance. I am satisfied with the current requirements for determining eligibility.
