*Photograph: Joe Buckley
BUS ÉIREANN have come under fire for the “scandalous” manner in which a new bus system for secondary schools in Shannon was introduced.
There was uproar in August at the introduction of a new pilot scheme introduced by the Department of Education and Bus Éireann to replace the traditional house-to-house service for students from Newmarket-on-Fergus and Sixmilebridge attending secondary school in Shannon.
As part of the scheme, secondary school children have been with Leap Cards that they can use twice a day, and they will travel to and from school using the Bus Éireann’s 343 bus service linking Limerick, Shannon and Ennis, and includes a stop at Shannon Airport.
Parents in the locality have described the scheme as “a make it up as you go along project”.
Cllr David Griffin (FF) raised the matter at this month’s sitting of the Shannon Municipal District. He tabled a motion which called on the National Transport Authority (NTA) “to progress the upgrading of stop infrastructure including timetabling and shelters on the newly amended 343 bus route, most especially at pick up and drop off points for school transport users”.
Acting senior executive officer, Anne Griffin confirmed the motion has been referred to the NTA.
Since the introduction of the scheme, councillors have been “firefighting,” Cllr Griffin said while criticising the lack of consultation with parents and school principals.
According to the Newmarket-on-Fergus native, elected representatives have been treated with a lot of disrespect. He said minor tweaks to the service such as a stop at Killulla Cross could have made services “more acceptable and palatable”. He pointed out that 280 young people in Sixmilebridge and another 110 in Newmarket are accessing buses, without proper stops in place or an adequate number of bus shelters.
Representatives from Bus Éireann need to attend the November meeting of the Shannon MD, Cllr John Crowe (FG) said. “The way it was handled was scandalous,” he remarked. He was at a loss as to why there was no designated collection point at Mount Ievers.
Established bus stops are no longer in use in certain areas since the bus route was amended, Cllr Donna McGettigan (SF) flagged. She said Bus Éireann have yet to notify customers of redundant stops which has left public transport users standing on the roadside waiting for long spells for buses that would not arrive. She pointed out that not everyone uses a smartphone and as a result some people had no idea that the bus they were waiting for would never arrive.
Surprise was voiced by Cllr McGettigan that there hasn’t been an accident at the Town Hall as she said the school run is a chaotic time by St Patrick’s Comprehensive. She said firefighters in Shannon took a quarter of an hour to access the fire station on one occasion due to the congestion. “There was no public consultation and no plan B. It is absolutely disgraceful that Bus Éireann would put this on parents and children and residents,” she added. She said she was aware of one case where a wheelchair user has found it very difficult to leave their home due to the situation.
Chaotic is the only word to describe the situation around Town Hall, Cllr Tony Mulcahy (FG) commented. “The way that TII have handled it is appalling,” he remarked.
Cathaoirleach of the Shannon MD, Cllr Pat O’Gorman (FF) criticised the failure to consult with secondary school principals in Shannon before the service was adapted.
