Many bus offenders havemental
“The fact this driver was punched in the face is in itself an escalation of the abusive incidents we’ve dealt with before. It highlights this crescendo of abuse to public service workers.”
Mckean believed there were several factors fuelling the increase including police telling him many offenders had mental health issues and had not taken their medication.
The growing footprint of gang activity in Tauranga “and rise in conflict between various factions”, plus young prospects trying to earn a patch were also factors, he said.
Mckean said there was a group of young people believed to be responsible for some incidents.
“The drivers know who they are. We say ‘don’t let them on the bus’ but they are there to drive the bus. They are not there as a steward or police officer. These people are workers who want to do their job and contribute to society.”
Mckean said he would ideally like a better support system for drivers.
At the moment, if a driver feared for the safety of themselves or others they communicate with headquarters based in Auckland who then communicate with police.
Mckean believed a locally-based communications centre with better domestic knowledge would help. He also would like to see a separate security vehicle established that could respond to incidents as back up if needed.
Some drivers, particularly female drivers, were did not want to work in certain areas at certain times.
“There’s an undercurrent of fear and anxiety.”
Western Bay of Plenty area commander Inspector Clifford Paxton said police had met with the regional council, Tauranga City Council and NZ Bus “to discuss our concerns in relation to recent activity at the bus depot area”.
“Police will continue to attend jobs in the area as required and work with our partners to collectively address and manage issues raised by the community,” Paxton said. NZ Bus were contacted for comment.