A solution has been found for more than a dozen Craughwell based students who were unable to secure a school transport connection to Loughrea.
Minister Ciaran Cannon has confirmed that a new minibus service will connect Craughwell to Loughrea in the new term.
The Galway TD says he has been in constant communication with Education Minister Joe McHugh, highlighting the plight of parents and families who have been facing a lack of certainty for school bus places.
The Education Minister confirmed last week that he had formally asked officials in his Department to sort out a service from Craughwell to Loughrea along with other significant pressure spots around the county.
“I raised the issue of school transport system with the Department on many occasions. And I know that Joe McHugh did not want to see crisis after crisis in a number of hotspots,” said Minister Cannon.
“He wanted a relatively small increase in funding of €1million to prevent issues arising in the worst affected areas for secondary school students. The aim was to accommodate as many concessionary students as possible by putting on a bigger bus or altering a route slightly or changing a running order for buses.
“I was totally supportive of his call and I am glad that the Department and Bus Eireann recognised the urgency and the pressure for Craughwell students and their families. Minister McHugh was proposing solutions this as far back as March.”
