School bus seatbelts not being used

THE Department of Education has conceded that its safety message for students travelling on school buses is not having the desired level of impact, reveal documents obtained by The Irish Examiner.

According to the briefing document prepared for Education Minister Mary Hanafin, the behaviour of some children using school transport is undermining advances made.

The document, obtained under Freedom of Information, adds that recent surveys conducted by Bus Éireann and the associations representing private bus operators found that the “level of compliance in the usage of seatbelts is low”.