School bus driver age limit
Deputy Lowry complained that experienced school bus drivers are being forced off at 70, worsening staffing shortages in Tipperary and elsewhere. The Tánaiste said he would ask Bus Éireann to look at it and noted the medical-report age threshold is rising from 70 to 75.
I ask the Tánaiste to address an anomaly that is occurring in Tipperary and across the country. Experienced drivers are being forced to stop driving school buses once they reach 70. It is not viable for younger people to obtain a D licence due to the costs involved so the bus and coach industry is losing out due to this ridiculous age restriction. A significant number of drivers on school runs are retired people who choose to work part time. This type of work lends itself to such employees. The irony is that drivers who are over 70 can continue to work in the private hire sector once they are annually certified as medically fit to do so. We have a situation where drivers over 70 can drive a full-size bus to the UK or any part of Europe but they cannot do a school run. They can also work for State bodies such as Transport for Ireland, TFI. There is a staggering contradiction here that needs to be addressed. I urge the Tánaiste to ask Bus Éireann to review its policy and to restore the dignity and respect for drivers reaching 70 years of age.
Comment on this
I will ask Bus Éireann to take a further look at this. The Minister of State at the Department of Transport, Deputy Naughton, announced that from Monday, 21 February 2022 the age at which an applicant for a driving licence must supply a medical report is going to increase from 70 to 75. Drivers under 75 will no longer have to supply a medical report confirming their fitness to drive unless they have an identified or specified illness or are required to do so by law. In addition, drivers aged 70 and over may continue to apply by post to renew a licence or learner permit and the Road Safety Authority, RSA, believes that between February and August this year there will be in the region of 15,000 applicants per month who are aged 70 or over.
Bus Éireann has no current plans to increase the age limit from 70 to 75 for school bus drivers. That does seem a bit inconsistent, given that the Minister of State has changed the rule from 70 to 75, so I will definitely take that up with Bus Éireann.