Refund for parents after school bus gaffe

THOUSANDS of families whose children use school buses can expect a refund on tickets after an embarrassing gaffe by the Department of Education.

Since early June, parents around the country have been receiving invoices from Bus Éireann, which operates the school transport scheme on behalf of the department. They show a 25% increase on school bus fares for next term, but the price hike was based on a letter sent in error by department officials to the bus company.

However, the Department of Education only notified Bus Éireann of the mistake last week, meaning those families who had already paid their fares will be entitled to a refund or credit against the second term fare. Last night, a Department of Education spokesperson would not comment on how the letter was sent or why it took over a month to rectify the mistake.

“A proposal to increase term contributions for school transport charges this year was considered in the department. It has been decided that there would be no increases in the charges, as a wider examination of the school transport system is currently being undertaken,” she said.

The school bus system carries more than 130,000 primary and second level pupils every day of the school year, at a cost of about €50 million to taxpayers annually. Children whose families have a medical card travel free, but tens of thousands of households pay a contributory fare of up to €107 per family.

National Parents Council (Primary) chief executive Fionnuala Kilfeather last night described the reversed 25% fare increase as a shambles.

“A price rise is far from what parents want; we’re looking for a safe school transport system with proper access for everybody.”

A spokesperson for Bus Éireann said people who have received invoices will be advised of the change and a decision will be made on how to reimburse those who have already paid.