Vol. 1046 No. 6
1. Deputy Martin Kenny asked the Minister for Transport to outline the estimated cost of providing private security onboard public transport since 2018; if his Department plans to introduce increased security measures on public transport; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53038/23]
Will the Minister outline the estimated cost of providing private security on public transport since 2018? Does his Department plan to introduce increased security measures on public transport and will he make a statement on the matter in the context of what happened last week?
I thank the Deputy for raising this important issue. While safety and security on public transport is a top priority, antisocial behaviour is a wider societal issue impacting many sectors of society, as the events of last week showed.
In response to the Deputy's specific question, I will begin by clarifying that neither Dublin Bus nor Go-Ahead Ireland employs private security personnel. However, Irish Rail, Bus Éireann and Luas do employ such services and the cost was slightly more than €52 million since 2018. In the context of providing increased security measures on public transport, I understand that the National Transport Authority, NTA, is reviewing operator security plans, priorities and the availability of funding. These measures would supplement the resources of An Garda Síochána, with which each of the public transport operators report an excellent working relationship. Joint operations with An Garda Síochána are now commonplace for all operators. An example of this is the recent operation twin tracks which took place on 15 November. This involved high visibility and protective Garda patrols of Luas and DART services across Dublin, as well as on several intercity rail services.
More broadly, from January to October this year, as part of the ongoing operation Saul, 593 arrests were made on public transport in the greater Dublin area, resulting in more than 1,000 charges. In addition, a Garda transport hub began operations in the national train control centre at Heuston Station last May, allowing An Garda Síochána to have oversight of all public transport networks. My Department and the NTA also engage regularly with operators on the issue of safety and security on public transport and each of the operators continues to invest in improving and adapting its policies to best ensure the safety of both staff and passengers.
I thank the Minister. While some efforts have been made, such as operation twin track, which was the most recent iteration of what An Garda Síochána has been doing to deal with anti-social behaviour on public transport, we cannot have a piecemeal solution. Criminal and anti-social behaviour on public transport is widespread and we need to recognise that. The figures released to me by the Department of Justice state that 16 arrests were made as part of the most recent day of action on 21 November. This does not include intelligence that was gathered by those on the front line carrying out the operations. When gardaí go out and do this, there are results and we see that things can change and improvements can be made. According to figures released by Irish Rail, 170 incidences of anti-social behaviour on Irish Rail were reported in the first three months of this year alone. We have a serious problem. I have engaged with An Garda Síochána, commuters, unions and workers and everyone I speak to agrees that we need a proper division of An Garda Síochána to provide public transport policing as soon as possible. The Government is resisting it, but we need to regroup and look at everything again after what happened in the past week.
My understanding of debates in recent weeks was the suggestion being made was that there should be a separate policing force completely outside An Garda Síochána. My view, and that of the Department, is that An Garda Síochána is the appropriate body. Whether there is a specific unit in An Garda Síochána is a matter for its operations. There has been a significant development in the past year with the establishment of the Garda hub in the national train control centre in Heuston Station, which provides An Garda Síochána with much greater integration, accessibility and visibility of what is happening on all the public transport networks. The situation continues to evolve. My understanding is that a system of 12 hubs around the country has been developed to assist Irish Rail in particular with reporting and responding to incidents. An Garda Síochána is strongly of the view that it would not be better for there to be a completely separate transport police service. I do not know what the compelling argument in favour of that approach is.
We do not differ on that. I am not talking about an alternative to An Garda Síochána. I am talking about a division of An Garda Síochána, which would act as a public transport policing service. If that were in place, not only would it be in place on the transport systems as they move, but it would also be at the pinch points, which are often at the stops, junctions, as the Minister said, at the train stations, tram stops and bus stops and the various areas where people often congregate and trouble brews. If we had public transport police in place last week, there is a fair chance that information that people were on the move and intent on causing trouble would have come sooner and we may not have been in the deplorable situation we found ourselves in. Those officers would be there to safeguard the public and would be available when trouble of this nature erupts. As we want more people - we are at one on this and we are probably at one with almost everyone in the House - to use public transport and want it to be the future, we must make sure it is safe and secure. If that is going to happen, we will have to invest in it and have a division of An Garda Síochána which can deliver that.
There may be greater flexibility when An Garda Síochána can call on a range of resources to assist in incidents, the likes of which happened last week. I am not convinced that a completely separate public transport police service would necessarily provide greater cover. We need the flexibility to put in a variety of Garda resources.
While Garda numbers are key, the use of cameras, especially on buses, also provides a strong deterrent. We all know anti-social behaviour on buses happens and drivers have had real difficulties in certain areas. My information is that the quality and effectiveness of the cameras now means that if people engage in anti-social or threatening behaviour on buses, they will be prosecuted and convicted because the cameras provide a strong security impact. That is one element of what needs to be a variety of responses to the issue.
