No end in sight to school bus fiasco, weeks into new term

Now some special needs students are missing out on school as a result of the chaos, reports Kieran O’Mahony

OVER 30 secondary school students across West Cork are still without school bus tickets, including three with special education needs.

There are up to 15 students in Ballinhassig who attend school in Kinsale and have still no bus tickets, while seven students from Rossmore who attend secondary school in Clonakilty are in the same situation.

Students in Dunderrow, Nohoval, Crossbarry and Newcestown are also waiting to hear if they can get concessionary bus tickets.

Despite measures announced in last month’s Budget which were meant to tackle the school transport chaos, frustrated parents are still being forced to drive their children to and from school every day.

Many of those affected are ‘concessionary’ bus ticket holders – that is tickets which are issued to students who wish to go to a school outside their catchment area – and they are subject to availability. But in previous years, many families were successful in securing them.

A move by Minister for Education Norma Foley (FF) to waive the bus fees for this year led to even more families applying for bus tickets and so those who were previously given the concessionary bus tickets found themselves without tickets this year, due to the increased demand.

Fine Gael Senator Tim Lombard, who addressed Minister Foley in the Seanad last week, said issues have not gone away and she cannot continue to avoid the topic.

‘We’re on mid-term break now, and we are still awaiting responses from the Department of Education and Bus Éireann. If parents at least knew what was happening, they could try and plan things, but as it stands they are left in limbo,’ said Sen Lombard.

‘What is more shocking is the fact that we have a situation whereby three students with special needs – in Innishannon, Belgooly and Ballinhassig – and who attend schools in Cork city, have been denied bus tickets. Some of them can only go to school now one or two days a week as parents try to manage the situation.’

Speaking in the Seanad, Sen Lombard added that this, in particular, was well flagged with Bus Éireann ahead of schools starting and said he and his team have received no response from the bus company.

‘We are in a lag now and I have no answer for these parents, most of whom applied in time, back in April, and we want to know what is the pathway,’ he said.

He also said bus companies have already contacted him to say that they have capacity and buses to sort out the service, but that they are not getting any direction from Bus Éireann.

‘There is a complete breakdown in communication between Bus Éireann and the parents involved, while I can’t speak for the Department of Education. We need to have a roadmap and a policy in place to ensure no child is left behind.’

A parent of a sixth class pupil at Laragh National School outside Bandon is still driving her daughter to school, after being denied a ticket despite travelling on the bus last year, and applying for tickets in time. Mary Boland told The Southern Star that she is still trying to manage the logistics of school drops, while also working full-time. Another parent in Ballineen is having to drive her son to Clonakilty every day, after the Leaving Cert student was denied a ticket, despite having had one for the past five years.

Kathleen Aherne said it has been ‘an absolute nightmare’ for the family and she has contacted every politician in West Cork to try and get a resolution.

‘They are all saying the same thing – that they are talking to Minister Norma Foley but at the end of the day nothing is happening. I’m having to spend up to €200 a week on diesel doing the school run,’ said Kathleen.

‘It’s so unfair and my son is in an important year. I really can’t understand the logic of it all, as there are empty seats on the bus, but I’m being told he must be allocated a bus ticket.’

Meanwhile, a 12-year-old boy from Bandon who has special needs and attends MICC in Dunmanway, has finally got a school bus ticket for his son after his dad highlighted their plight recently on local radio.

Speaking on C103, Jonathon Carroll said he was forced to drive his son Sebastian back and forth to Dunmanway every day, despite applying for a bus ticket. He was told that Bus Éireann didn’t get the paperwork in time and he had to then resend it.

‘They received it on August 31st and I have been driving him to Dunmanway every day since,’ he said.

Following his decision to go on the radio with his appeal, Jonathon was contacted by Bus Éireann the following day to say that transport would be arranged for his son from last Monday.