Transport workers have called for urgent investment in the school bus fleet after another incident involving the Bus Éireann fleet earlier today.
The emergency services were called to Clonmellon school in Co Westmeath this morning after a passer-by reported smoke coming from a school bus. The bus was stationary at the time of the incident and there were no children on board. No one was injured.
A spokeswoman for Bus Éireann said a gasket in an air compressor on the eighteen-year-old bus had malfunctioned.
"The brakes kicked in as a safety response and this created some smoke. The fire brigade were called but there was no fire to put out," she said.
"All the children were off the bus and had departed the scene," the spokeswoman add. "There was no danger."
Michael Faherty, general secretary of the National Bus and Rail Union (NBRU) said that while nobody was injured in the incident, it is "another warning to the Government that the school bus fleet and rural services generally are in urgent need of renewal."
Mr Faherty was speaking from Donegal Town, where the NBRU conference is due to begin this evening.
"We have motions down for debate at our conference tomorrow at which our members will debate the shortage of buses in the fleet and the lack of funding from Government to upgrade services to the travelling public," he said.
"In addition we will be discussing industrial action to heighten public awareness of the conditions under which our members have to work and provide services. These too have implications for safety standards," he added.
This is the fourth incident involving school buses in the past two months. Two weeks ago a 13-year-old boy was taken to hospital after falling from the emergency exit of a school bus near Oram, Co Monaghan.
On April 28th a school bus and waste disposal lorry collided near Tulsk, Co Roscommon. Seven teenagers and the bus driver were taken to hospital.
Fifteen-year-old Michael White died on April 4th after the bus in which he was travelling crashed near the village of Clara, Co Offaly. This week is also the one year anniversary of the Kentstown school bus crash tragedy in which five students were killed.