Public transport passenger numbers exceed limits to maintain distancing
PASSENGER numbers on public transport have already exceeded the 20pc capacity limits needed to observe two metres social distancing.
Figures for the past week put the total number of passengers on all services at around 25pc of normal and demand is expected to rise steadily as lockdown restrictions ease further.
Concern is now growing about how numbers can be controlled, with transport staff saying they cannot police the situation while gardaí no longer have legal powers to enforce distancing.
“There is an issue there. Social distancing guidelines are just guidelines. There is no actual regulation,” said National Transport Authority (NTA) spokesman Dermot O’Gara. “We rely more on people’s own sense of personal responsibility.”
Dermot O’Leary, of the National Bus and Rail Union, said plans had to be made to deal with the looming problem.
“We wrote to all the transport companies a month ago about this. Drivers drive. They’re not there to police who gets on or decide who makes the cut at a busy stop or platform,” he said.
The increase in demand for public transport comes as road traffic volumes also climbed more than halfway back to normal levels.
Of 10 of the key roads monitored by Transport Infrastructure Ireland, only one carried less than 50pc of its normal volumes this week, while the rest carried between 53pc and 63pc.
Transport authorities have warned some urban areas will only be able to accommodate 70pc of normal road traffic with any comfort because of reduced lane width, altered traffic light sequencing and parking restrictions in order to provide more space for pedestrians and cyclists.
With roads and public transport already at or near capacity, the question arises of how any social distancing can be achieved when large numbers of employees begin returning to the workplace.
Mr O’Gara said journeys on public transport this week were more staggered throughout the day than usual so no major issues with social distancing arose.
He said the NTA was also talking to employers’ groups to get a sense of their back-towork plans.
“We are keeping these things under constant review. We are able to add a bit more capacity in terms of extra services but that’s about as much as we can do,” he added.
“We are only one part of the jigsaw. Others have to play their part.”
Mr O’Leary said drivers were already reporting having to leave passengers behind on some Bus Éireann routes, while some Dublin Bus services were also having trouble meeting demand.
He has appealed for the wearing of masks to be mandatory for passengers but he said this was in addition to keeping numbers lower than what was considered acceptable in the past.
“Even if we get regulations on masks, even if they drop the social distancing, we can’t countenance going back to the old ways where you have 67 people sitting on a bus and up to 90 with standing room.
“It’s no longer acceptable for staff to be working in those conditions and it shouldn’t be acceptable for passengers to have to travel like that either. We need to sit down and completely redesign our public transport,” he said.