LAST UPDATE | 17 Apr 2024

ALMOST THREE QUARTERS of public transport workers say they have seen drug use on board, while 20% reported it to be a daily issue.

That’s according to a new survey of more than 650 SIPTU members who work across bus, rail and LUAS networks.

They also said that racism is part of the “epidemic of abuse and anti-social behaviour” staff face. More than three-quarters of ethnic minority staff reported incidents of racist harassment and abuse while at work.

Meanwhile, just under 80% of respondents said the issue of drug use by passengers on public transport had got worse in the last 12 months.

Some 73% of respondents said they had felt threatened and unsafe due to the use of drugs by passengers.

Most incidents reported were of cannabis use but significant numbers, between a quarter and a third of respondents, said they witnessed the use of cocaine, heroin and crack cocaine.

Transport police

Meanwhile, 70% of respondents said a dedicated transport police would improve matters.

Fianna Fáil, Sinn Féin and the Labour Party have called for a dedicated transport police to be established to combat this behaviour and protect passengers.

With regards to what this would look like, SIPTU representatives said they “don’t want to be prescriptive”, but it could be similar to the airport policing unit, which has powers to detain and arrest people.

At the Oireachtas Committee on Transport and Communications today, Adrian Kane of SIPTU said we need

There has been a “huge turnover” of staff in recent years and staff say it’s down to the strain of anti-social behaviour on staff.

One train driver said: “I’m 30 years in the industry and I’ve never seen it this bad.”

Union representative John Murphy said: “They’re going out the door as quickly as they come in” as they are sent on certain routes and “anticipating there’s going to be trouble”.

Some workers have been “stalked” on social media by troublesome passengers “just for doing their jobs”.