Labor must address public transport troubles

Sunday 21 July, 2024

The Opposition is calling on Peter Malinauskas to increase security measures across South Australia’s public transport system, with new data painting a troubling picture of the state of the network.

Department for Infrastructure and Transport (DIT) data – released under Freedom of Information – reveals a significant number of assaults and disorderly behaviour reports on our buses, trains, and trams, highlighting the need for enhanced security measures to protect both passengers and staff.

During the month of December, it was reported to DIT that eight staff were assaulted on buses – that’s almost two every week.

According to the data, a further six customers were assaulted on buses during that month.

There were also 112 reports of disorderly behaviour on buses, and of the 18 reports of vandalism 11 involved a missile.

On our trains, there were 50 reports of disorderly behaviour in December. Of the 164 reports of vandalism, 31 were for interfering with equipment and 57 for graffiti.

Of the 426 total incidents on trains reported to DIT in December, Adelaide Station had the highest count with 48 incidents, followed by Salisbury with 19, Noarlunga Centre with 17, Port Adelaide Station with 15, and Elizabeth with 14.

There were also four assaults of customers on board trams during December according to the data, and 22 reports of disorderly behaviour.

Shadow Minister for Infrastructure and Transport, Vincent Tarzia, said Peter Malinauskas must work harder to stamp out poor behaviour on our public transport network.

“South Australian public transport users and staff deserve to feel safe and protected at all times, but right now many of them do not,” Mr Tarzia said.

“We’re constantly hearing reports of poor behaviour on our buses, trams, and trains – whether it’s gangs of youths harassing passengers, or drivers being attacked – and this data just adds more evidence to the growing need for increased security measures.

“While we welcome news of protective screens being installed on our buses, as assaults on drivers are on the rise, we called for this important safety measure to be fast tracked back in September.

“We’ve now learned it’s going to take four years for the rollout to be complete, and we believe that is just far too slow.

“After some horrific train incidents last year – including an 11-year-old who was struck on his way to school – Tom Koutsantonis promised his department would conduct a rail safety review, but we’ve heard nothing about it since.

“Labor needs to let us know exactly what this review found. Are there improvements that can be made? Tom Koutsantonis told South Australians ‘everything is on the table’.

“The Opposition has long been calling on Peter Malinauskas to put enticing incentives on the table to attract and retain SAPOL officers in our already stretched police force. We believe more police on the beat could also go a long way in helping deter bad behaviour on our public transport network.”