May 2009
Strokestown area Independent Councillor Tom Crosby has received confirmation of alarming increases in Post Primary School Bus Charges.
The Department of Education & Science have confirmed that the Fifty Five Thousand Post Primary Pupils and Pupils availing of concessionary Transport will be subject to close on 100% increase in School Bus fees increasing from €168 per pupil per year to a whopping €300 per year per pupil which will commence on the new school term from the 1st of September next. Cllr Crosby states that this is yet another major blow to families already reeling from the crippling measures by the recent serious reduction in their family income as a result of the various levies and increased taxation in the emergency Budget only a few weeks ago. Cllr Crosby has been approached by parents throughout the area who are genuinely not able to cope with the serious loss of income and clearly this new doubling up of the School Bus charges is the last straw for many parents.
Cllr Crosby has taken the matter up on behalf of parents and has written to the Minister and Department of Education & Science outlining that that this major increase in School Bus Transport fees can not be met by the many families who are struggling to survive in these unprecedented times, the councillor has outline that if the Department insist on implementing these massive increases it will certainly be counter productive as it will result in many parents having to resort to other measures in order to get their children to and from School and the School Buses will be travelling half empty.
The Councillor is also placing the matter by way of Notice of Motion before the next meeting of the County Council in order to get full backing from all elected members and to have the matter circulated to all other Local Authorities throughout the Country so as to have their full support in reversing these unacceptable increases.