Figures on concessionary school transport tickets issued in Cavan and Monaghan have been revealed.
Concessionary school transport tickets are allocated to non-eligible students for spare seats on school buses after all eligible children have been allocated.
The information was provided by Minister of State for Education Michael Moynihan in response to parliamentary questions from Deputy Peadar Tóibín.
Deputy Toibin asked the Minister in light of ongoing concerns about school transport access, to provide a county-by-county breakdown for 2025 of the number of primary and post-primary pupils unable to secure school transport; the number of concessionary tickets issued; the number of children in IPAS accommodation provided with school transport; the number of vacant seats on services serving IPAS centres; and the actions being taken in each county to address capacity shortfalls..
In response, the Minister said the School Transport Scheme, which is managed by Bus Éireann, has expanded significantly over the past six years. In that
time, the numbers of children and young people using the service have grown from under 120,000 pupils in 2018 to over 181,000 pupils in 2026, which equates to an increase of close to 50%.
Minister Moynihan noted that the data requested by the Deputy on pupils who did not secure tickets is not available in the manner requested, however, it should be noted that a total of 1,137 pupils at post primary level and 385 pupils at primary level did not receive tickets.
He also confirmed that 706 concessionary post-primary tickets and 925 primary tickets were issued in Cavan for the 2025/26 school year.
In Monaghan, 602 concessionary post-primary tickets and 657 primary tickets were issued for the same time.
Nationally, there were 27,890 concessionary tickets issued for post primary and 21,859 issued for primary.
