Unlicensed buses carry ‘hundreds’ of children to school

PARENTS groups have called for all buses carrying young people to be placed under the same regulations as those operating under the State-funded school transport system.

Jim Jackman, president of the National Parents Council - Post Primary (NPC-PP) said he has anecdotal evidence that hundreds of children are being brought to and from school each day on buses hired by parents themselves.

“A lot of this has to do with outdated and unfair catchment boundaries for school transport, but regardless of that, it seems that these buses hired privately do not come under the same strategic checks as those contracted to Bus Éireann,” he said.

“The same rules in relation to safety should apply to all buses, whether they’re bringing people to school or not,” Mr Jackman said.

He was speaking last night after Transport Minister Martin Cullen told the Dáil that the school bus that crashed in Co Offaly yesterday was not registered on the bus operators’ licence from his department.

Although the operator is licensed by the Department of Transport, a different bus was registered on that licence. The department requires a roadworthiness certificate before a vehicle can be registered on the licence as an authorised vehicle.

Under the school transport scheme it operates for the Department of Education, Bus Éireann pays private operators to bring children to school in around 2,500 buses, in addition to its own 600-strong school bus fleet.

A Bus Éireann spokesperson said all private operators contracted under the scheme go through rigorous checks of all their vehicles and drivers.

“We seek full documentation about every bus they would propose to use, including roadworthiness certificates,” she said.

Mr Jackman said there are also strong concerns about the levels of safety on buses because of the lack of proper supervision.

“The drivers are expected to control children and keep them in their seats, but it requires paid supervisors to do this job or to maybe ensure children wear seat belts,” he said.

The Department of Education and Bus Éireann expect to meet the target to have seat belts on all school buses, by the end of this year. A team contracted to fit seat belts in all Bus Éireann vehicles carrying school children is finishing 20 buses per week and is due to complete the job by September.

Private operators contracted through Bus Éireann to the school transport scheme have been told of the requirements for them to have seat belts by the end of December.