NSW rail chiefs considering lethal security measures

The NSW Government and Railcorp are considering a trial 
introduction of potentially lethal products against Sydney train 
passengers whose behaviour is deemed by transit officers to be 
dangerous or offensive.

The transit officers already have the right to issue fines, 
arrest passengers, demand their names and addresses or order them 
to leave a train. Given the rate of crime on trains, many 
passengers are doubtless grateful for the extra security afforded 
by the transit officers, who recently replaced the legally 
ineffectual private security guards.

However, many passengers are now beginning to wonder whether some 
transit officers themselves may pose a threat to their health and 
safety. 

A transit officer was recently stood down after allegedly 
assaulting two passengers at Gosford station.

Now the NSW Minister for Transport Michael Costa and the heads of 
NSW Railcorp are discussing allowing officers to use assault 
products such as capsicum sprays and gels.

While Greens transport spokesperson Lee Rhiannon commented: 
"Transit officers are not empowered to use lethal force. Capsicum 
sprays and gels can potentially kill people who have a heart 
condition or a respiratory illness, as they cause increased heart 
rate and restrict breathing 

"In most cases the effects of these capsicum products are 
temporary, but they have killed people with pre-existing health 
problems. A transit officer cannot assess a person's health 
condition before using the capsicum spray or gel to restrain 
them."

The number of drivers peaked during the 2000 Olympics, and in 
fact there was a driver surplus then. The trains worked with 
wonderful efficiency at that time, but immediately afterwards the 
thousands of extra staff that had been hired by Railcorp for the 
Games were dismissed, and from that moment on the number of 
drivers also began to dwindle.

As a result, the number of drivers this year reached a critically 
low point, resulting in an appalling level of delays and 
cancelled services. The government's response was to use the 
shortage as an excuse to adopt the outrageous expedient of 
cutting weekend rail services in half. Trains were placed by far 
less efficient private buses.

Neither the government nor Railcorp has ever satisfactorily 
explained why they cannot scrape together enough drivers to 
provide a bare minimum service four years later.

Because of their experience, railway guards can be trained in 
less than a third of the time it takes to train a raw recruit.

The key question now is whether this transfer will be a matter of 
robbing Peter to pay Paul" or improve the railway system. Does 
the government intend replacing the guards? Or is it paving the 
way for a critical shortage of guards further down the track?

More drivers and guards are required, apart from present 
shortages, in another four years time the new Chatswood to Epping 
link will put huge demands on the system.

In the meantime, Sydney's train passengers await with bated 
breath and a great deal of apprehension the next NSW Railcorp 
initiative.