North Mayo families seek restoration of school bus service
The pick-up point is located at a busy junction on a main road.
A North Mayo community is calling for an urgent overhaul of the school transport system, which they is causing headaches and obstacles for families in rural areas.
Pupils from the townlands of Derryfadda and Boleyglass in Bofeenaun find themselves without a post-primary bus service despite fully meeting the criteria since the 2023/2024 school year.
A bus had serviced the route from 1979 up to 2021 when it was withdrawn due to a decline in student numbers. A local action group has been actively campaigning to get this route reinstated after the number of students rose again.
Local parents in Derryfadda and Boleyglass have told the that the absence of this service has resulted in a “daily scramble” to ensure their children are collected from schools and that rural children have a right to a safe reliable and affordable school transport option that is available in towns and cities.
They also raised additional concerns over the current designated pickup and drop-off point which is situated at the busy junction of the R315 and L1723 along the main commuter route from Bofeenaun to Castlebar. Parents have said it is a treacherous location, particularly in the approaching winter months, with a significant blind spot on approach and no lighting, cycle lanes or footpaths.
They say if the original route is reinstated, the pickup/drop point would move to a location in Boleyglass, which is currently used as the primary school bus route, thus ensuring local children are transported safely.
The issue was recently raised in the Dáil by Sinn Féin TD Rose-Conway Walsh who said the area is completely unsafe for students.
“Either children walk there along unlit roads with no cycle lanes, or parents must drive and pull in at the junction, further adding to the danger.” “With the darker winter months upon us, the risk to children’s safety is even greater. We are not asking for anything new, only for the reinstatement of a route that served these communities for four decades. Common sense needs to prevail.”
