Dublin Bus services monitored by gardaí
DUBLIN Bus has resumed operations with An Garda Síochána, in which they accompany inspectors onboard, and continue to monitor public safety through its community forums.
Anti-social behaviour on public transport has been a point of contention for some time, with the issue being raised in Dáil Éireann recently amid heightened pressure from unions.
Calls have been made in recent times for a dedicated police force for public transport, with RTÉ Investigates airing concerns from transport workers in relation to their own safety on board due to anti-social behaviour concerns.
The National Bus and Rail Union (NRBU) is calling for a prospective dedicated Garda Public Transport Division to tackle the issues and concerns.
The Echo witnessed an operation in which members of An Garda Síochána accompanied inspectors onto the 27 bus at the junction of the Cheeverstown Road and the Tallaght bypass on Wednesday, July 13.
As a member of the Gardaí accompanied the inspectors on board, while the 27 ferried passengers up towards Jobstown, a Garda van followed closely behind.
“I can confirm that this is a routine operation between Dublin Bus and An Garda Síochána,” a spokesperson for Dublin Bus told The Echo.
“Dublin Bus has a strong and close relationship with An Garda Síochána and has set up a number of community forums in different areas across the city.
“Unfortunately due to Covid 19 some routine operations had to be suspended.
“However, we have recently resumed this operation with An Garda Síochána across our fleet of over 1,000 buses and throughout the network.
“Last week we carried out a 3-day operation within the Templeogue/Tallaght area and will resume this operation in a new location from next week.”
In the first nine months of 2020, there was a total of 21 instances where the 27 Dublin Bus route, which runs between Clare Hall and Jobstown, was curtailed.
In 2019, before the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, the 27 bus route was curtailed a total of 27 times due to anti-social behaviour.
In the past, the company was forced to alter the route of the 27 bus as many as five times in less than two weeks in a bid to avoid anti-social behaviour incidents in the West Tallaght area.
