Skip to main content
Normal View

School Transport

Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 22 July 2020

Wednesday, 22 July 2020

Questions (159)

Alan Kelly

Question:

159. Deputy Alan Kelly asked the Minister for Education and Skills the number of vehicles that would be required in the 2020/2021 school year based on the current rule of using 50% of public transport capacity due to Covid-19, that will provide the same level of service as was provided in the school transport scheme in 2019; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17575/20]

View answer

Written answers

School Transport is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department of Education.

The purpose of my Department's School Transport Scheme is, having regard to available resources, to support the transport to and from school of children who reside remote from their nearest school.

In the 2019/20 school year over 120,000 children, including over 14,200 children with special educational needs, were transported in over 5,000 vehicles on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country covering over 100 million kilometres at a cost of over €219m in 2019.

The Department is currently working with the education partners and relevant stakeholders in planning for the re-opening of schools in late August/September, which will be based on public health advice and which will put the best interests of our school population first. The objective is to re-open schools as fully, normally and safely as possible in late August and September 2020. The operation of school transport services in September 2020 will also be informed by the outcome of this planning for re-opening schools.

Interim public health advice from the Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC) in relation to the re-opening of schools has recently been received and published. The interim public health advice can be found here: https://www.education.ie/en/covid-19/interim-recommendations-for-the-reopening-of-schools-and-educational-facilities.pdf. The recommendations relating to School Transport are set out in Section 6.

With regard to school transport, we are continuing to engage with relevant stakeholders including Bus Éireann, the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport and the National Transport Authority on the logistical considerations that arise from the public health advice received.

We aim to have guidance issued in line with the health advice by the end of July at the latest and there will be a communications campaign for parents and the whole school community to support the re-opening of our schools which will include guidance on the operation of school transport services. This will also include communications with school transport operators.

Top
Share