Tauranga bus drivers consider wider industrial action after machete incident

A bus leaves the newly relocated Tauranga CBD bus stop on Durham St. Photo / Mead Norton

Tauranga bus drivers are considering escalating their industrial action over safety after a man boarded a bus with a machete.

But a bus company boss says such a move could leave people stranded, potentially creating another safety issue.

A man was arrested after boarding a bus from the city's CBD with a machete last week. The weapon was at first thought to be a firearm. Police pulled the bus over on Fraser St, searched the man and found a machete.

A police spokeswoman confirmed a person was arrested on Wednesday after boarding a bus with a knife. This person has been dealt with by way of alternative resolution, she said.

The incident was the latest in a spate of anti-social behaviour plaguing Tauranga bus drivers and bus shelters. The bad behaviour has included reports of weapons such as a homemade taser, assault, racial abuse and physical damage to buses.

It prompted drivers in May to boycott key bus stops in Mount Maunganui and Tauranga CBD if they felt unsafe.

A person was arrested by police last week after boarding a bus with a machete. Photo / Sandra Conchie

The Bay of Plenty Regional Council has since increased security at these stops and the CBD terminal was relocated from Willow St to Durham St.

However, First Union organiser Graham McKean said "nothing's changed except we have a machete-bearing passenger that has jumped on board and added heightened stress and anxiety to drivers".

McKean said the union was looking to "escalate" its health and safety approach.

"Because of what's been happening, the drivers, if they feel unsafe because of congregations of young people, we've refused to stop in those areas. That's been heightened because of a machete-bearing customer."

McKean said the union was considering extending the bus stop boycott to after 8pm if drivers felt unsafe. This was because security hired to help monitor these bus stops only worked until 8pm.

"We are now considering our position that those areas are unprotected after 8pm," McKean said.

"We've had a passenger come on board with a lethal weapon. We've had a bus driver in Rotorua attacked, with a knife held to their throat. All these things need to be focused on in our approach to health and safety.

"We are considering our options around the free flow of public transport."

McKean said he was not ruling out a strike.

First Union organiser Graham McKean. Photo / Andrew Warner

The incidents come as the bus industry faces a significant shortage of drivers, which itself has forced the Tauranga public transport network into a reduced timetable.

NZ Bus manages the buses and drivers in Tauranga under a regional council contract.

NZ Bus chief operating officer Jay Zmijewski said it would not support the union's proposed action, noting "all stakeholders have been working co-operatively in order to identify solutions".

"Law-abiding passengers may be left stranded without the means to travel home, which raises other safety concerns for those in the community".

Zmijewski said NZ Bus encouraged any drivers feeling stressed or anxious to approach their local manager to discuss their concerns.

"In relation to the [machete] incident... the driver was unaware that there was a passenger on board the bus with a knife, until pulling into the bus stop where the police boarded the bus and removed the passenger.

"The driver was spoken to by management and reported being fine following the incident."

Zmijewski said NZ Bus had received positive feedback from drivers about the relocated CBD bus stop reducing anti-social behaviour.

Regional council interim transport operations manager Chris Brewer said there had been "a substantial decrease in anti-social behaviour since the CBD bus stop moved from Willow St to Durham St".

Since May, the council restricted the 24/7 free school fares to only being available from 7am to 9am and from when school finishes to 5pm on weekdays during school term. Additional CCTV cameras were installed at Durham St and since then there has been an increased security presence at Farm St (by Bayfair) and Durham St.

Brewer said the council had not received reports of incidents outside the hours bus stop security operated that warranted extended security hours or manpower, for now.

"Bay of Plenty Regional Council wants Tauranga to be a safe city and the safety of our bus users is paramount. Any anti-social behaviour is a criminal matter and regional council is reliant on people to contact the police as we all strive to make the community a safer place," he said.