Tens of thousands of hard-pressed families have been granted a temporary reprieve after the government confirmed that it will not raise school transport fees to €500 per pupil in the coming academic year.

However, a department of education spokesman refused to rule out introducing the new charge – which was recommended in the 'An Bord Snip Nua' report – in subsequent years.

In the region of 125,000 pupils around the country avail of school transport daily. But the number of secondary students using school transport actually fell by around 10,000 last year, after a previous hike in charges prompted their hard-pressed parents to source alternative methods of transport.

Last month, it emerged that the possibility of introducing the new fee was being actively considered by the government as part of its pre-budget discussions. However, opposition politicians have warned that any further increases will put more families under financial strain and force them to withdraw their children from the scheme. They argue that such a move would also go against governmental policy on the environment by increasing the number of cars on the road.

Students will therefore continue to pay a maximum of €300 a year for the service next year, subject to a maximum family charge of €650.

However, an education department spokesman refused to rule out increasing the fees in subsequent years, and would not say if the McCarthy proposals to increase them to €500 per year are being actively considered at government level.