To ask the Minister for Education and Science if a person can purchase a one way ticket for school transport as in many cases secondary school students are availing of after school facilities; and if he will make a statement on the matter - Seán Sherlock

For WRITTEN answer on Tuesday, 23rd June, 2009. Reference Number: 24622/09 Freagra

Minister of State, Seán Haughey

The school transport system is arranged on the basis of return journeys to and from school and arrangements are put in place to ensure each pupil travelling on a school transport service is allocated an individual seat. This level of service is necessary to ensure each pupil has a comfortable and safe journey to and from school.

The school transport scheme, which is operated by Bus Éireann on my Department's behalf, is a major logistical operation that facilitates the transportation of over 135,000 children to primary and post-primary schools each day; it involves about 42 million journeys and over 82 million kilometred on 6,000 routes every school year.

While I appreciate the Deputy's concerns, it is necessary for second-level students to pay the charges for the full service even where they do not intend to avail of the service for their journey home from school.