Connacht Tribune
Families still in limbo over school bus tickets
The school bus tickets fiasco rumbled on this week as parents across the county reported a continued failure to provide adequate services to pupils left waiting at the bus stop.
One mother told the Connacht Tribune that her son has still not received his bus ticket, three weeks after he returned to school, despite countless attempts to secure a resolution with Bus Éireann.
In July, it was announced that school bus places were to be made free this year but no additional capacity has been added to the system.
Removing the €350 charge led to unprecedented demand for the service and now, many of those who previously paid for tickets have been refused a place this year.
Dympna Ginty from Ardrahan said she applied to Bus Éireann for her son and daughter in July and received her daughter’s ticket a couple of weeks later – but one for her son, a student at Clarin College in Athenry, never materialised.
“I’ve been in contact with Bus Éireann a few times; I’ve contacted local TDs. I keep getting back mixed messages from Bus Éireann – they told me to reapply so I sent the application form in and they email to say I’ll have the ticket in seven to ten days . . . then they’ll email saying he’s not eligible.
“I know he is eligible because his primary school is a feeder school for Clarin College. I would actually pay for a ticket at this stage – we had them every year up to now and always paid for them,” said Ms Ginty.
In the meantime, she must drive from Ardrahan to Athenry to drop her son to school every morning, before travelling to the city for work.
“It’s costing me in diesel; I’m nearly late for work; my husband has to leave work early in the evening to collect him and he’s entitled to a ticket. They had the tickets every year and they were never checked and I know some people who are just sending their children on the bus without the ticket because they’ve no choice,” she said.
Another mother, who didn’t wish to be named, told the Tribune that she had eventually secured a ticket for her child, but the buses were so packed that students were having to double up in the seats.
“There have been days when my daughter has got on the bus and there were no seats left at all. They don’t check the tickets so the buses are packed and it’s just not safe.
“It’s not every day, but there have been a few days and I think it’s because not all those who got the tickets are using them every day. Because they were free, people just got them to use the odd time when its suits, but there are people who need them five days a week and they can’t get one,” she said.
Meanwhile, TD for Roscommon Galway, Denis Naughten, this week received a commitment from the Minister for Education that Bus Éireann would continue to process applications and issue tickets as soon as extra buses and drivers are sourced.
“But disappointingly, the Minister is not guaranteeing that children and their siblings who had a bus service last year will get a service this year, as we now face into the third school week of the new term.
“It seems the Minister has forgotten that the core objective behind the school transport scheme is to bring children from rural areas to school, but in some instances the only ones who have benefited from the Government announcement are children in towns,” said Deputy Naughten.
He said while the idea of making school transport free to assist in the cost-of-living crisis was welcome, the absence of proper planning resulted in chaos that had yet to be resolved.
Significant state investment is required to address ‘shocking’ inequalities that leave cancer patients in the West at greater risk of succumbing to the disease.
A meeting of Regional Health Forum West heard that survival rates for breast, lung and colorectal cancers than the national average, and with the most deprived quintile of the population, the West’s residents faced poorer outcomes from a cancer diagnosis.
For breast cancer patients, the five-year survival rate was 80% in the West versus 85% nationally; for lung cancer patients it was 16.7% in the west against a 19.5% national survival rate; and in the West’s colorectal cancer patients, there was a 62.6% survival rate where the national average was 63.1%.
These startling statistics were provided in answer to a question from Ballinasloe-based Cllr Evelyn Parsons (Ind) who said it was yet another reminder that cancer treatment infrastructure in the West was in dire need of improvement.
“The situation is pretty stark. In the Western Regional Health Forum area, we have the highest incidence of deprivation and the highest health inequalities because of that – we have the highest incidences of cancer nationally because of that,” said Cllr Parsons, who is also a general practitioner.
In details provided by CEO of Saolta Health Care Group, which operates Galway’s hospitals, it was stated that a number of factors were impacting on patient outcomes.
Get the full story in this week’s Connacht Tribune, on sale in shops now, or you can download the digital edition from www.connachttribune.ie. You can also download our Connacht Tribune App from Apple’s App Store or get the Android Version from Google Play.
Galway 3-18
Cork 1-10
NEW setting; new opposition; new challenge. It made no difference to the Galway minor hurlers as they chalked up a remarkable sixth consecutive double digits championship victory at Semple Stadium on Saturday.
The final scoreline in Thurles may have been a little harsh on Cork, but there was no doubting Galway’s overall superiority in setting up only a second-ever All-Ireland showdown against Clare at the same venue on Sunday week.
Having claimed an historic Leinster title the previous weekend, Galway took a while to get going against the Rebels and also endured their first period in a match in which they were heavily outscored, but still the boys in maroon roll on.
Beating a decent Cork outfit by 14 points sums up how formidable Galway are. No team has managed to lay a glove on them so far, and though Clare might ask them questions other challengers haven’t, they are going to have to find significant improvement on their semi-final win over 14-man Kilkenny to pull off a final upset.
Galway just aren’t winning their matches; they are overpowering the teams which have stood in their way. Their level of consistency is admirable for young players starting off on the inter-county journey, while the team’s temperament appears to be bombproof, no matter what is thrown at them.
Having romped through Leinster, Galway should have been a bit rattled by being only level (0-4 each) after 20 minutes and being a little fortunate not to have been behind; or when Cork stormed out of the blocks at the start of the second half by hitting 1-4 to just a solitary point in reply, but there was never any trace of panic in their ranks.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App
Download the Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App to access to Galway’s best-selling newspaper.
Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Or purchase the Digital Edition for PC, Mac or Laptop from Pagesuite HERE.
Get the Connacht Tribune Live app
The Connacht Tribune Live app is the home of everything that is happening in Galway City and county. It’s completely FREE and features all the latest news, sport and information on what’s on in your area. Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
GARDAÍ and the IFA have issued a joint appeal to all road users to take extra care as the silage season gets under way across the country.
Silage harvesting started in many parts of Galway last week – and over the coming month, the sight of tractors and trailers on rural roads will be getting far more frequent.
Inspector Conor Madden, who is in charge of Galway Roads Policing, told the Farming Tribune that a bit of extra care and common-sense from all road users would go a long way towards preventing serious collisions on roads this summer.
“One thing I would ask farmers and contractors to consider is to try and get more experienced drivers working for them.
“Tractors have got faster and bigger – and they are also towing heavy loads of silage – so care and experience are a great help in terms of accident prevention,” Inspector Madden told the Farming Tribune.
He said that tractor drivers should always be aware of traffic building up behind them and to pull in and let these vehicles pass, where it was safe to do so.
“By the same token, other road users should always exercise extra care; drive that bit slower; and ‘pull in’ that bit more, when meeting tractors and heavy machinery.
“We all want to see everyone enjoying a safe summer on our roads – that extra bit of care, and consideration for other roads users can make a huge difference,” said Conor Madden.
He also advised motorists and tractor drivers to be acutely aware of pedestrians and cyclists on the roads during the summer season when more people would be out walking and cycling on the roads.
The IFA has also joined in on the road safety appeal with Galway IFA Farm Family and Social Affairs Chair Teresa Roche asking all road users to exercise that extra bit of care and caution.
“We are renewing our annual appeal for motorists to be on the look out for tractors, trailers and other agricultural machinery exiting from fields and farmyards,” she said.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App
Download the Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App to access to Galway’s best-selling newspaper.
Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Or purchase the Digital Edition for PC, Mac or Laptop from Pagesuite HERE.
Get the Connacht Tribune Live app
The Connacht Tribune Live app is the home of everything that is happening in Galway City and county. It’s completely FREE and features all the latest news, sport and information on what’s on in your area. Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Families queue up for school’s offer of free house
West has lower cancer survival rates than rest
Galway minors continue to lay waste to all opponents
Gardaí and IFA issue a joint appeal on summer road safety
Marathon Man plans to call a halt – but not before he hits 160 races
