Violent attacks on city bus drivers
Incidents of anti-social behaviour including assaults are an almost daily occurrence on Galway buses with one driver narrowly missing being repeatedly punched in Eyre Square while another was spat at and had a plastic bottle shoved in her face.
The National Rail and Bus Union (NBRU) has brought their national campaign to Galway by distributing flyers urging the public to back their call for a dedicated Garda transport unit to protect drivers.
Mark Greaney, spokesman for the Western National Executive of NBRU, said reports of verbal and physical abuse were a daily occurrence in Galway and there was no pattern to them.
“Is there a route, a time that these occur? There’s not. It’s across the board. People have got more violent. It’s frightening. As drivers you feel we’re left on our own,” he exclaimed.
“By the time the Gardaí respond the perpetrators are long gone. We’re not trained security people. You can be subjected to something that affects your whole life. We have drivers – not in Galway now – but they’ve never been able to return to work.”
See full story in this week’s Galway City Tribune.