There are growing calls to eliminate the current age limit of 70 for school bus drivers, due to ongoing high demand for school transport and a shortage of available drivers, reports RTE.
Each year, thousands of drivers are required to service 10,300 routes connecting primary and secondary schools across the country.
One such driver, Donal O’Leary from Cork, was among the many who helped transport 172,000 children as part of the School Transport Scheme, managed by Bus Éireann for the Department of Education, reports RTE.
“I would go back tomorrow if I could. They were great youngsters. We used to have our little singsongs on the bus,” he said, reports RTE.
The topic came up in the Seanad last week when Fianna Fáil Senator Robbie Gallagher pointed out the inconsistency in school bus drivers being forced to retire at 70, while private bus drivers of the same age can still drive children for other purposes.
“You have the ludicrous situation where you could have someone that is 70 years of age, that is not allowed to take the children to school, but that same driver could drive a private bus and take them 200 miles down the road with no issue whatsoever,” Mr Gallagher told the Seanad, reports RTE.
Minister of State Noel Grealish responded by saying the Government plans to commission an independent review to examine the effects of lifting the age cap, suggesting it might help ease the driver shortage.
“We have cases where the buses are parked and we cannot get drivers,” he said, reports RTE.
Bus Éireann noted that its policy of retiring drivers at 70 also applies to its public transport services.
“Our decision to operate the scheme with drivers up to age 70 is grounded in the best safety interests of our customers, including young children, our drivers and other road users,” according to a statement for the company, reports RTE.
The company explained it had consulted the Road Safety Authority and that the policy reflects a balance between safety, risk, and operational demands, citing studies that show increased crash risk among drivers of large vehicles over 70, reports RTE.
The Road Safety Authority commissioned research on the safety of older drivers operating buses and trucks, reports RTE.
The findings suggest that while older drivers often mitigate risk by avoiding peak hours or bad weather, these choices wouldn’t be possible for school bus drivers over 70.
“The work environment requires you to go regardless of weather, regardless of day or light, regardless of rush hour, road conditions,” said Prof Des O’Neill, who led the research carried out by the National Office for Traffic Medicine, reports RTE.
The report also indicated that health risks and rates of illness are generally higher among bus drivers.
The Department of Education said it is currently in discussions with both the Department of Transport and Bus Éireann on the matter, reports RTE.
Meanwhile, Mr O’Leary said he’s more than willing to return to the job and hopes to be back behind the wheel next school year.
“I miss the boys and girls, they were my friends really, to be truthful,” he said, reports RTE.
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