What will it take for Transport Police to be established? North inner-city residents and bus drivers must be able to travel in safety.
What will it take for Transport Police to be established? North inner-city residents and bus drivers must be able to travel in safety. - The Labour Party
On this May Day, Dublin Central Labour TD Marie Sherlock called on the Minister for Transport to press on with the establishment of the long promised Transport Police.
Highlighting the continued suspension of Dublin Bus services stopping in Mountjoy square, Labour TD Marie Sherlock said:
“Once again, people in our city are watching buses pass them by because of another shocking threatening attack on a bus driver.
“In late April, a Dublin Bus driver was threatened with what looked like a gun while on his number 7 bus in Mountjoy Square in the late evening. On foot of this, the driver’s trade union understandably instigated a suspension of services in the area after 7 pm and this suspension of services remains in place. I understand the Union is in discussions with Dublin Bus about ensuring the safety of its members while at work.
“Crucially, this is yet another incident which forces a suspension of services, the discommoding of local residents forced to walk longer distances to get to their bus and obviously it has an impact on all drivers whom we rely on every day for one million passenger journeys across our city. The SIPTU Respect Transport Workers campaign has highlighted for some years now the growing issue of anti-social behaviour on our public transport network.
“We need to see urgency in the Government response. Fianna Fáil have been very vocal in promising a transport police over recent years and it is a commitment of the programme for Government. We now need to see that promise made good and ensure the safety of all drivers and commuters on our bus network.”