Combating Violence and Insecurity on Urban Public

TransportA British and European Trade

Union PerspectiveATU Conference on Violence and Security

10th - 11th March 2006Toronto

byMartin Mayer

National Passenger Services Trade Group General Executive Council

'Driver could die in bus violence'

• BUS drivers fear one of them will be killed unless more is done to protect them from violence.

• The stark warning comes just days after a thug attacked a driver in a dispute over a fare causing the Stagecoach bus to crash into a shop.

• The driver of the 192 single-decker received hospital treatment for minor injuries to his hand and thigh. A passenger suffered broken ribs.

'Driver could die in bus violence'

• Drivers are being physically and verbally abused, spat at, threatened and having things thrown at them.

• One Stagecoach driver said: "Unless more is done to protect us one of us will be killed. The situation is now out of control. Youngsters and adults are becoming more aggressive and turning nasty if you pull them up over fares, for having a fake pass or smoking.

• "It's scary because you are locked in a small cab with someone attacking you. All buses should now be fitted with CCTV."

Australian bus drivers demand increased security

• 27 June 1998• Work delegates representing bus drivers

working for private companies in the Australian state of New South Wales will meet next week to consider industrial action. The drivers are angry over the increasing number of assaults on drivers because of the failure of operators to provide adequate security.

Australian bus drivers demand increased security

• A recent survey revealed that almost half the 300 drivers interviewed had been assaulted or robbed. A spokesman for the Transport Workers Union said they were an "open target".

• In May 1997 a woman driver, Sue Benson, was raped at knifepoint while driving a government bus late at night.

Slain Seattle bus driver, ATU member, remembered with

procession service• SEATTLE - A solemn procession through downtown

Seattle of some 70 buses Dec. 8 recognized the loss of Mark McLaughlin, the Metro bus driver shot and killed in the dramatic Nov. 27 crash of his bus off the Aurora Bridge.

• McLaughlin and 69-year-old passenger Herman Liebelt were killed when passenger Silas Cool shot the 44-year-old driver twice, causing the bus to career through a metal railing, plunging more than 40 feet to the roof of an apartment building, then to the ground. McLaughlin died at the scene and Cool took his own life. Thirty-two other passengers suffered various injuries.

Slain Seattle bus driver, ATU member, remembered with

procession service• McLaughlin and 69-year-old passenger Herman

Liebelt were killed when passenger Silas Cool shot the 44-year-old driver twice, causing the bus to career through a metal railing, plunging more than 40 feet to the roof of an apartment building, then to the ground. McLaughlin died at the scene and Cool took his own life. Thirty-two other passengers suffered various injuries.

TGWU Assaults Briefing 2002

• “Assaults on staff are perhaps the most emotive health and safety issue of all facing bus drivers and support staff and also one of the most intractable. It’s not just the assaults that take place and the injuries received by our members. It’s also the justified fear of assault, the many near incidents, the threats and menacing comments which all add tremendous stress on the driver as he or she tries to go about their work.”

“Protecting Bus and Coach Crews”

Violence is

• “Any incident in which an employee is abused, threatened or assaulted by a member of

• the public in circumstances arising out of the course of his or her employment”

• Health and Safety Executive

“Protecting Bus and Coach Crews”

• Violence and anti-social behaviour can take many forms, including verbal abuse and threats as well as spitting and physical assaults. Even minor cases can cause shock and stress, the effects of which may not appear until several weeks later. Severe cases can require hospital treatment and time off work for recovery. That in turn can lead to driver shortages, affecting the reliability of bus services.

Dept. for Transport, UK Government December 2003

“Protecting Bus and Coach Crews”

• Assaults can cause lasting injury or psychological damage. Employers have legal duties in protecting their employees and the public under the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974.

Dept. for Transport, UK Government December 2003

Cab door screen with retrofit extension

Modern city bus with full screen

Radio and CCTV camera in roof

Radio and CCTV camera and monitor

Assaults notice on bus

Combating Violence and Insecurity on Urban Public

Transport

A British and European Trade Union Perspective

ATU Conference on Violence and Security10th - 11th March 2006

Toronto by

Martin MayerNational Passenger Services Trade Group

General Executive Council