Ireland’s chief transport strategist has insisted there is no need for dedicated policing on services as the Oireachtas Transport Committee vowed to take the issue further, citing “public concerns” over safety.
At a hearing of the committee on Wednesday, Anne Graham, chief executive of the National Transport Authority (NTA), said the extent of services would make focused policing difficult and that gardaí were on hand to respond to incidents.
Her comments came a week after fresh demands for dedicated policing were voiced by Fianna Fáil politicians at a parliamentary party meeting amid growing unease around assaults.
“I don’t agree with the provision of a dedicated transport police,” Ms Graham said in response to questions.
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“How would you choose to place your dedicated transport police? What services would you choose? Because you’re never going to be able to cover every service that’s operated across the State.”
Ms Graham said a working relationship that allows transport providers to call for Garda support was preferable. Private security is also provided.
While public concerns around safety existed throughout the Covid-19 pandemic due to the relative lack of service users, NTA annual surveys are showing this has since eased.
Committee chairman Kieran O’Donnell said the issue of transport security warranted further consideration.
“We will come back on the transport police,” the Fine Gael TD said. “It’s an issue that’s coming up with the general public. People need to feel safe when they are on public transport.”
Wednesday’s committee was convened to discuss issues facing the taxi industry, which has suffered capacity setbacks since the pandemic.
The NTA has put out to public consultation plans to further extend the road life of vehicles to 15 years – a move that would stretch to 2025 before being rolled back. The authority wants taxis to be under 10 years old but has been forced to extend that cut off point due to Covid-19 and further supply chain problems with new cars.
However, it has been criticised because a decision on whether the latest extension will go ahead cannot be made until later this year after the board has had time to consider the public consultation process.
“For the taxi driver who is [obligated to] change their car in January…what are they do to?” asked Fine Gael Senator Jerry Buttimer. “Can you see the frustration and the anxiety of the taxi driver who is imminently due to change their car?”
A depletion in driver numbers during the pandemic means the industry has been struggling to recover with peak-time demand and lack of supply has been of particular concern in the last year.
“As it stands, taxi services are struggling to meet demand at certain times in cities across Ireland,” said Fiona Brady, head of operations at Free Now Ireland, the taxi-hailing app, adding that an expansion of 24-hour public transport and staggering of nightlife closing times was also required to alleviate pressure.
Intensive demand is felt most acutely during major events. The Free Now app received in the region of 10,000 hourly requests during the recent Garth Brooks concerts; 50,000 over three hours during Dublin’s Marley Park concerts; and 35,000 over two hours following a recent Westlife appearance.
NTA data, however, appears to indicate a level of recovery even if it will take some time to return to pre-pandemic levels.
Driver licence renewals are now increasing each month at a rate 72 per cent higher than in 2019. New licence applications are up 132 per cent compared to last year, while drivers returning to active status having taken a break during the pandemic are up almost one third.
