Frank Feighan (Sligo-Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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576. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if additional school transport will be provided for nine students in a rural school (details supplied) in County Leitrim that were unable to obtain seats in 2021; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [51043/21]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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The School Transport Scheme is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department. In the 2020/2021 school year over 114,100 children, including over 14,700 children with special educational needs, were 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. Under the terms of the Primary School Transport Scheme, children are eligible for transport where they reside not less than 3.2 kms from and are attending their nearest primary school as determined by the Department/Bus Éireann, having regard to ethos and language.

All children who are eligible and who completed the application and payment process on time for the 2021/22 school year are accommodated on school transport services where such services are in operation.  

Children who apply for school transport, but who are not eligible, are considered for spare seats that may exist after eligible children have been facilitated; such seats are referred to as concessionary seats. Due to the nature of concessionary transport for non-eligible children and the priority of providing places for eligible children, there may be an excess of demand over supply for concessionary places, in these cases Bus Éireann allocates tickets for spare seats using an agreed selection process.

Under the terms of the scheme, the availability of concessionary transport varies from year to year based on the capacity on the buses running on all of the various routes and the number of eligible children accommodated on each route.  Routes will not be extended or altered, additional vehicles will not be introduced, nor will larger vehicles or extra trips using existing vehicles be provided to cater for children travelling on a concessionary basis.

Bus Eireann has confirmed that one mainstream service operates into the school to whom the Deputy refers.  lt is a sixteen seat vehicle with 5 eligible pupils and 10 concessionary pupils onboard.  Eight concessionary pupils were not successsful in acquiring a ticket in the selection process.  Bus Éireann has confirmed that these pupils are not eligible for transport as they are not attending their closest school.