Incidents of public disorder on the Luas are well down on last year, according to figures from Transdev, the company behind the Dublin tram system. While in 2015, drivers on the Luas reported more than 700 incidents of public disorder, so far this year 320 have been reported. Public complaints were also much reduced, from 590 in 2015 to 174 so far this year.
The tram service normally carries 34.6 million passengers a year, or 94,700 a day, although there was a 12-day strike this year, with no services.
Transdev has said that based on current figures, public disorder on the service appears to be down. It says there is a security presence on the Red Line, from morning until the last tram, and on the Green Line, from early evening until the last tram. There were additional operations on Luas lines throughout 2016 involving gardaí, private security company STT and ticket inspectors working together, the company adds.
It says additional security staff were deployed at reported anti-social behaviour hotspots on the Green Line in summer 2015 and again this summer. The Green Line runs from St Stephen’s Green to Brides Glen. There were also additional security operations along the Suir Road and Golden Bridge area on the Red Line, which runs from Tallaght and Saggart to Connolly and the Point.
The public disorder figures show there were 177 incidents of anti-social behaviour reported by Luas drivers so far this year, 40 thefts, 62 threats to staff and 24 threats to the public. In addition, 18 incidents involved people found asleep on the tram.
Last year, there were almost twice as many incidents of anti-social behaviour (335), 143 thefts, 111 threats to staff and 63 threats to the public, as reported by drivers. The 174 passenger complaints this year, through the Luas customer care database, might overlap with incidents reported by drivers.
Despite improved figures, public concern about safety on the Luas and in particular the Red Line, has continued.
One seasoned traveller, who did not wish to be named, reported incidents on his journeys from Tallaght to work in the last two weeks, including being threatened with having his face “smashed in” and witnessing “junkies unconscious” on a tram at 7.20am. The commuter also said he saw an elderly man threatened with being “split open” by two drunken passengers, a woman being intimidated and “junkies cutting drugs” at the Red Cow tram stop.
Mark Gleeson, spokesman for Rail Users Ireland, said the organisation had heard stories of people smoking, taking drugs, urinating, defacing the tram, setting a compartment on fire and general vandalism and intimidation, as well as robbery and racial abuse. He said there was a distinct problem at the Tallaght end of the Red Line.
Heuston and Connolly station areas experienced general low-level crime, pick-pocketing and begging, but there was a “reasonable security presence in those areas”, he said. Problems on the Green Line could usually be attributed to “a few students who have had a few too many beers and are acting the maggot”.
Mr Gleeson called for a dedicated Garda transport unit to be funded using the money currently spent on private security. “The Luas is a good service, it is just they need to sort out the anti-social behaviour aspect.”
A Garda spokesman said it received mainly “low-level public order calls” related to the Luas, but no more than for other forms of transport.
