School Transport Provision

Wednesday, 15 January 2014

Questions (224, 225)

Jonathan O'Brien

Question:

224. Deputy Jonathan O'Brien asked the Minister for Education and Skills if he will indicate the circular which states that fees for school transport may be paid in two instalments. [1136/14]

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225. Deputy Jonathan O'Brien asked the Minister for Education and Skills if his Department has examined the costs involved in amending the payments system for school transport fees to allow a monthly payment system for parents. [1137/14]

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Written answers

Minister of State at the Department of Education and Skills

I propose to take Questions Nos. 224 and 225 together.

The school transport scheme, which is operated by Bus Éireann on behalf of my Department, facilitates the transportation of some 114,000 children to primary and post-primary schools each day. Bus Éireann is responsible for the planning and routing of each dedicated school transport service which is determined by the number and location of children who are eligible for school transport each year. Annual charging, as opposed to term charging, was introduced in the 2009/10 school year with provision for the family payment to be made in two instalments in July and December. The current annual charges for school transport are €100 per child at primary level and €350 per child at post primary level; these charges are subject to an annual family maximum of €220 for families with children attending primary schools only or an overall family maximum of €650. Families with children who are eligible for school transport and who hold valid medical cards (GMS Scheme) are exempt from the annual charge. Eligible children with special educational needs also travel free of charge. Invoices are issued by Bus Éireann in July of each year and each child who travels is allocated a seat for the school year. The change to the charging was communicated through this invoicing system. Annual charging has enabled Bus Éireann to streamline the payments system and plan the allocation of tickets on an annual rather than term basis thus ensuring that route planning and seating arrangements were managed in a more efficient and cost effective manner. Given the complexity of the system and the necessity to plan for and provide seats for each eligible child availing of school transport services on vehicles for the full school year, it would not be practical to issue invoices, collect monies and allocate seating on a monthly basis.