Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 14 December 2023
209. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for Transport if he is concerned with personal safety issues for public transport users; if he has liaised with An Garda Síochána in this regard; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [56182/23]
View answerAs Minister for Transport, I have responsibility for policy and overall funding in relation to public transport; however, I am not involved in the day-to-day operations of public transport.
Safety and security on public transport are matters that, first and foremost, must be managed by every public transport company, in conjunction with An Garda Síochána, where appropriate. To that end, I am regularly briefed on joint operations between transport operators and An Garda Síochána which continue to have a positive impact across the country.
Nonetheless, both my Department and the National Transport Authority engage regularly with operators on the issue, and the NTA has established a Working Group on Antisocial Behaviour which meets monthly with the operators to discuss developing trends and share best practice.
Further, each of the operators have their own safety and security policies in place, to deal with issues such as antisocial behaviour, and have introduced a number of initiatives in recent years to help combat the issue, including:
• Increased investment on security - for example, a substantial increase in spending on rail security in the past five years, from €3.7m in 2016 to €6.0m in 2022;
• CCTV - the entire Dublin Bus fleet is fully fitted with CCTV cameras, with up to 11 internal cameras and three external cameras fitted on the more modern vehicles in the fleet;
• Radios on each Dublin Bus vehicle which facilitate immediate contact to a Central Control Centre;
• Text alert systems, and;
• Joint initiatives with An Garda Síochana, such as ‘Operation Twin-Track’.
• Additionally, as part of my Department’s Sustainable Mobility Plan, the NTA has committed to develop and publish an annual ‘Public Transport Passenger Safety and Personal Security Report’ and implement measures where appropriate.
• The combined interventions implemented to date have substantially helped tackle anti-social behaviour. However, it will require on-going monitoring. Therefore, I am committed to continuing to work with all stakeholders to ensure the safest possible travel environment for members of the public, and the safest possible working environment for the employees providing our valuable public transport services.
