Latest Auckland bus attack leaves driver in hospital with fractured ribs and eye damage

• An Auckland bus driver is in hospital with fractured ribs and eye damage after Saturday’s attack.
• Police arrested three young people at St Lukes bus hub, referring them to Youth Aid.
• Auckland Tramways Union president Gary Froggatt said attacks on bus drivers are becoming more serious.

An Auckland bus driver is in Auckland Hospital with fractured ribs and eye damage after being attacked at the St Lukes bus hub on Saturday night.

Auckland Tramways Union president Gary Froggatt said the bus driver was returning from using a portaloo installed for drivers when he was attacked on the way back to the bus.

He said the man was still in hospital and had been told by a doctor it was going to take a while for him to recover.

Police said shortly before 11pm on Saturday they were called to St Lukes Rd after a report of young people fighting and subsequently discovered an injured bus driver who was taken to hospital in a serious condition.

Three young people were taken into custody at the scene and have been referred to Youth Aid, police said.

They said they are working to support the victim and his family and ensure the incident is thoroughly investigated.

Police were called to people fighting at St Lukes on Saturday night.

Frogatt said the man had moved to Auckland from the Philippines to work as a bus driver, boarding with two other Filipino drivers in a downtown apartment, and has no family in New Zealand.

Hundreds of drivers were recruited last year from the Philippines, India and Fiji to address a bus driver shortage in Auckland and other cities.

Duncan McGrory, Auckland Transport’s public transport service operations manager, said the driver will be off work while he recovers and will get support from the bus operator (Kinetic).

“We have been supporting police with their inquiries and provided them with CCTV footage,” he said.

Kinetic NZ told the Herald it was aware of the incident but is unable to comment due to an ongoing internal investigation.

“All drivers involved in any incidents receive immediate help and support including professional care through our employee assistance programme,” a spokesperson said.

“The health and wellbeing of our people is very important to us, and we work closely with NZ Police and AT to ensure all matters of anti-social or criminal behaviour are managed appropriately to protect our drivers, and the public.”

Bus drivers have been regularly targeted in recent months, including a beating, an alleged racially charged assault, a neck-slashing and a wrench attack.

Last month, police arrested a 37-year-old man wanted in connection to the death of a woman on a bus in Auckland’s Onehunga.

The woman - who was a passenger on the bus - was found with multiple stab wounds and died at the scene after the attack on October 23.

A bus driver suffered facial injuries after he was attacked by a passenger following racial abuse in September on the Number 18 bus in Avondale.

In September, Auckland bus driver Rajnish Trehan was attacked in a racially charged tirade after an unruly passenger refused to pay.

New figures reveal security and emergency incidents are a daily reality on Auckland’s public transport network.

Auckland Transport (AT) data released to Newstalk ZB under the Official Information Act (OIA) shows the agency reported an average of more than 93 incidents a week - more than 13 a day - in the year to August.

Froggatt said attacks on buses are getting more serious, and a series of stop-work meetings have been called beginning next week at the city’s seven bus depots where the latest and previous attacks will be on the agenda.

He said Kinetic has agreed to consult with employees advising them of the safety protocols in place, are no longer required to monitor HOP cards or fares, and not to get involved in arguments with passengers for their safety.

If someone refuses to tag on or pay for a ticket, Froggatt said, bus drivers are instructed to print a no-fare ticket, which goes to AT.

Auckland Tramways Union president Gary Froggatt.

“AT then monitors that and if it is a regular occurrence on that particular route, they send out a transport officer to investigate.

“The driver can put in a report at the end of the shift if they are really concerned about something, or they can immediately ring the radio control centre and seek advice.

“But the drivers are no longer going to be held responsible for passengers that don’t pay their fares. In the old days, when I was driving, if we didn’t issue a ticket we were in real trouble,” said Froggatt.

McGrory said AT is taking action to keep bus drivers safe, but there is no quick solution.

“We operate over 13,500 bus trips every weekday and the vast majority of our passengers are courteous, friendly and respectful to our drivers and other passengers.

“Any incident on our network is one too many and it is great to see police taking swift action to catch offenders,” he said.

Buses are fitted with CCTV and panic buttons, safety screens are being installed to protect drivers, and more transport officers are being deployed, said McGrory.

Two months ago, Mayor Wayne Brown urged Auckland Transport to “get on with the rollout” of perspex screens to protect bus drivers.

The Government is increasing police patrols on public transport and may make offences against public transport users an aggravated factor at sentencing, but Police Minster Mark Mitchell said there are “deep intergenerational problems” at play.

Police would like to hear from anyone who might have witnessed the attack on the bus driver at St Lukes and has information to share.

Anyone with information can call 105 and use the reference number 241110/0469.

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