Over the years I have had many dealings with ACT Transport Workers Union Secretary Klaus Pinkas and found him to be a straight shooter who cares for his members. 

Whilst I am not normally in favour of sudden strikes, in the case of our bus drivers walking off the job last Friday to highlight the problems they face with assaults and bad behaviour on our buses, I am supportive. Sometimes you need to shock people and governments into realising there is a real pressing problem that needs attending to. 

It is not acceptable that drivers can have prawns thrown over them, be spat at and abused by brainless, offensive brats (often brainless, offensive adults too). Forty incidents of assaults a month on drivers in the ACT is 40 too many. 

The local government needs to increase security by enhancing things like plastic guards to help protect drivers, but also by introducing some specialist transport police with powers of arrest to randomly patrol buses, especially on our worst routes. These transit police would have the power to arrest and also to stop the bus and physically throw off unruly passengers. 

In the old days, school kids who misbehaved on buses would cop it once they got to school. Maybe this should happen again.

On a related note, I have been pleased to observe, in the course of my court work, instances of ordinary members of the public coming to the aid of shopkeepers and workers in shopping centres who are being accosted and harassed by unruly kids. In a recent case in a suburban centre, four or five members of the public restrained two young shoplifters until police arrived. I have actually done this myself in the past as well as intervened to stop abusive behaviour on public transport in NSW and overseas. I’m probably a bit old for it these days. 

Whilst in some circumstances it may be a bit risky, if bus commuters feel comfortable that they can intervene to assist a driver in distress, they should. My old footy mate Rohan once intervened to stop a young drunk of about 20 (he had half a bottle of rum with him) who was aggressively pestering an older guy of about 65 to stop at an ATM once the bus got to the Tuggeranong Town centre and give him some money. The older guy was scared, the driver was not impressed (apparently the young bloke was a serial pest on that bus route) and nor was Rohan.

Rohan butted in and restrained him, the driver stopped the bus somewhere near the Kambah ovals on the Parkway and Rohan escorted the young drunk (and his bottle) off the bus. Rohan then got back on and the bus continued south. Now, Rohan had a black belt 3rd dan in karate, so he could look after himself. I don’t recommend that for everyone, but if passengers band together to stand up to unruly passengers in support of the driver or other passengers being bullied, it can work wonders. So would a few transit police . . . 

Our bus drivers do a great job in often difficult circumstances and like police and emergency service workers deserve our support. They don’t deserve to be assaulted and/or abused.