Crowe meets Bus Eireann and Department of Education to outline parent concerns at new 343 pilot school bus schem

–                  Hundreds of secondary school students from Cratloe, Sixmilebridge and Newmarket-on-Fergus affected by change to school bus service

–                  Crowe held a number of public meetings with concerned parents ahead of meeting with Bus Eireann and Dept of Education officials

Clare Fianna Fail TD, Cathal Crowe, says Bus Eireann and the Department of Education need to ensure proper oversight and ongoing monitoring is given to a new Pilot School Bus Scheme being rolled out for students in the Cratloe, Sixmilebridge and Newmarket areas.

The new scheme will see the dedicated school bus service for secondary school students in the area replaced with an enhanced 343 public bus route, with additional capacity to account for the increased passenger numbers.

Deputy Crowe attending a meeting with officials from Bus Eireann and the Department of Transport on Tuesday, where he discussed concerns he fielded from parents at two community meetings he organised in Shannon and Cratloe over the past weekend.

Speaking after today’s meeting, Deputy Crowe said: “This afternoon I was part of a deputation of politicians that met with officials from Bus Eireann and the Department of Education to discuss proposals for a new public bus service which will bring students in Cratloe, Sixmilebridge and Newmarket-on-Fergus to their secondary schools.

“The meeting lasted for over two hours and quite a lot was discussed. Prior to this meeting I arranged for two public meetings to take place, the first on Saturday morning in the Oakwood Hotel in Shannon and the second on Sunday evening in Cratloe Community Hall. In total, approximately a hundred parents attended these meetings and voiced many concerns which were represented at today’s meeting.

“A particular concern of parents was that up to 280 students would have to be dropped off each morning outside McGregor’s Bar in Sixmilebridge and that this could be chaotic. At today’s meeting it was explained that pick-ups here will happen in a staggered fashion and that precise timings will be communicated to parents over the next few days.

“Another point of major concern for parents was the possibility of students being picked up on the hard shoulder of the N18 dual carriageway, close to Setright’s Bar in Cratloe. Bus Eireann officials have today advised that this pick-up point will most likely be abandoned and they are trying to agree a safer pick-up point with the National Transport Authority.

“Many parents also complained that whilst the drop-off point for Shannon Comprehensive is quite close to the school itself, children attending St Caimin’s were likely to be dropped off approximately 550 metres from the school gate, which isn’t ideal on a morning with bad weather. A welcome outcome of today’s meeting has been clarification that a new stop closer to the school gate is being worked on and will soon be confirmed by Bus Eireann and the National Transport Authority. It is important to flag that this stop will be for students originating from Sixmilebridge and it is yet to be decided if students from Newmarket-on-Fergus will also be dropped off at a location closer to the school-gate also.

“The proposed changes will see children switching from traditional school bus passes to Leap cards. At today’s meeting it was explained that the Leap card entitled each student to be collected at a prescribed time each morning and to return on a bus of their choosing each afternoon. The afternoon flexibility is to allow for students who partake in extra-curricular activities or who attend supervised study to travel later.

“Several parents have expressed concern to me that their children, in particular those starting secondary schools, will be interfacing with adults unknown to them on the public bus service. I raised these concerns with officials from Bus Eireann and the Department of Education and they reiterated that it was standard practice across Ireland that secondary school students travelled to and from school on public bus services and that this shouldn’t be a major issue.

“Finally, it was agreed that Bus Eireann and Department of Education officials would meet with the principals of both St Caimin’s and Shannon Comprehensive over the coming days and a meeting involving a deputation of parents would take place later this week, with a time and date to be confirmed.

“I share many of the concerns of parents and I will be demanding a lot more clarity on how this service will operate before the new school year begins. When the new school year begins, we will need significant oversight and monitoring of the service from both Bus Eireann and the Department of Education.”