Security beefed up after Dart drivers’ threats over thugs
Measures follow anti-social antics on northside trains
SECURITY measures were being stepped up on Dart services last night following threats from drivers that they will abandon rail services north of Connolly Station due to intimidating anti-social behaviour.
Their warning has prompted calls for Transport Minister Shane Ross to establish a dedicated public transport force, as opposition parties accused him of ‘enabling and allowing a free-for-all’ on the services.
Drivers are saying that they may have ‘no choice’ but to withdraw services in the north of the city for certain periods, as the rise in antisocial behaviour and assaults at stations and on carriages has left them fearful for the safety of themselves and passengers.
‘We have anti-social behaviour where people are unruly on trains and are upsetting fellow passengers,’ Dermot O’Leary, general secretary of the National Bus and Rail Union.’
Figures released earlier this week showed that there were 43 incidents of physical assault in Irish Rail trains last year, compared to only nine in 2016.
Irish Rail staff have also said that they are being intimidated regularly by gangs in balaclavas and hoodies.
Last month, a group of around a dozen people in balaclavas stormed a Dart train at Clongriffin station at around 10.30pm, launching a terrifying graffiti attack on the train and threatening passengers.
Meanwhile, Liam Gallagher’s concert at Malahide Castle last weekend resulted in service chaos, with some trains being delayed for up to an hour due to anti-social behaviour interfering with carriage doors closing.
The NBRU will halt plans to withdraw services in the coming days, after Irish Rail put extra security measures in place in certain hotspots yesterday evening.
Irish Rail’s corporate communications manager, Barry Kenny said that as of yesterday evening, static security teams were being put in place in train stations of concern, while mobile security teams were also being expanded.
In a bid to prevent services from being abandoned by drivers, the company is also stepping up their communication with gardaí and expanding resources in their CCTV monitoring centre.
‘We’ve a common interest in ensuring that it’s a safe environment for customers and staff,’ Mr Kenny told this paper yesterday.
‘While the vast majority of people travel on our services without incident, there’s no denying we are facing an increasing issue.
‘I don’t think for a moment that our employees are only thinking of themselves, they are thinking of the customers as well in all of this.’
Mr O’Leary said that if things get worse over the weekend, they may withdraw services from certain areas at certain times of the day. As a long-term solution, drivers are demanding that Minister Ross seriously considers the establishment of a dedicated police transport force who would have the authority to arrest, a view which the NBRU outlined in a letter to the Minister last week.
Fianna Fáil’s spokesman for transport, Robert Troy has backed the call for the Minister to appoint dedicated public transport police, accusing him of ‘enabling and allowing a free-for-all on public transport. If there was a dedicated public transport police corps established, the very fact that the travelling public would be unaware when somebody (from the force) was going to arrive on the train would be a big deterrent,’ the Longford-Westmeath TD said.
In a response to the Irish Daily Mail last night, a spokesman for Minister Ross said: ‘The Minister has asked his Department to engage with Iarnród Éireann and the Railway Safety Advisory Council (which includes representatives from operators and trade unions) to take all action necessary to ensure the safety of passengers and workers.’
The spokesman added that ‘any such dedicated transport police that may be considered necessary would require primary legislation and additional resources’.
HORRIFYING stories of anti-social behaviour on the Dart last weekend, as concertgoers made their way to Malahide Castle to see a series of gigs there, may have alerted a wider public to a growing problem – but for regular commuters, it was an all-too-familiar situation.
On that occasion, young people openly took drugs and urinated in the carriages but daily there are reports of drug addicts on the trains and, with summer now well and truly upon us, there no doubt will be repeats of the pitched battles that took place year on northside beaches such as Portmarnock with rival gangs using the Dart to travel to these fights.
Unsurprisingly, train drivers have threatened to stop travelling north of Connolly station because of the potential dangers to their passengers, so Irish Rail has responded by increasing security as of last night.
Extra patrols on platforms will complement existing mobile services that can respond quickly to reported incidents, and that is welcome.
No-one should feel threatened on public transport, especially as public policy is to encourage more people to actually use it. The problem is that between stations there is no escape. And if a fight breaks out, it can be terrifying for young, old, and all in between.
We support safe travelling and commuting on trains for passengers and drivers. Open drinking and drug-taking, graffiti, feet on seats, the playing of loud music and other anti-social behaviour make it unpleasant and even sometimes dangerous to travel.
While the extra security is welcome, it merely addresses the symptom of the problem, not the core issue.
The full force of the law, in the form of the Garda Síochána, must be brought into the mix, to neuter this problem before it gets worse, and to make travelling by train enjoyable for all.