School Transport is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department of Education. In the current school year over 114,100 children, including over 14,700 children with special educational needs, are transported on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country at a cost of over €224.7m in 2020.
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.
A number of changes to the School Transport Scheme were introduced in Budget 2011, which derived from recommendations in the Value for Money Review of the Scheme. These changes encompassed a number of elements including the cessation of catchment boundary area to determine eligibility at post primary level.
Under the terms of the Department's School Transport Scheme children are eligible for school transport if they satisfy the distance criteria (3.2km at primary and 4.8km at post-primary) and are attending their nearest school as determined by my Department/Bus Éireann, having regard to ethos and language.
All children who are eligible for school transport and who complete the application and payment process on time will be accommodated on school transport services for the 2021/2022 school year where such services are in operation. Children who are not eligible for school transport may apply for transport on a concessionary basis only and will be facilitated where spare seats are available after eligible children have been accommodated. Where the number of ineligible children exceeds the number of spare seats available Bus Éireann allocates tickets using an agreed selection process.
Bus Éireann has advised that pupils who reside in Rathcoffey village and are attending Maynooth Post Primary Centre are generally not eligible for transport as they reside closer to Scoil Mhuire Community School, Clane, Co. Kildare.
However, pupils who reside in Rathcoffey village and are attending Gaelcholáiste Mhaigh Nuad, Maynooth, Co. Kildare (All Irish) and Maynooth Community College, Co. Kildare (Aonad) may be eligible for transport as they are attending their nearest All Irish school.
