1501. Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for Education and Youth the number of concessionary school transport tickets were issued for the 25/26 school year and the number of concessionary school transport tickets were issued for the 26/27 school year by county, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [63555/26]

The School Transport Scheme is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department of Education and Youth.

The scheme is made up of three separate schemes, the school transport scheme for primary, post primary and for children with special educational needs.

The scheme 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 180,000 pupils in 2025, which equates to an increase of close to 50%.

In the 2025/26 school year, out of a total of 151,743 tickets issued on mainstream services, a total of 49,749 tickets were issued for concessionary seats.

For the 2026/27 school year, this information requested by the Deputy is not readily available since Bus Éireann are continuing to engage with families regarding the issue of tickets and setting up services for the 2026/27 school year.