Articles: Ticket inspectors filmed roughing up passengers

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From the ABC News click here!

Ticket inspectors filmed roughing up passengers

Ticket inspectors filmed roughing up passengers

By Alma Mistry

The Victorian Ombudsman has released CCTV footage of ticket inspectors using excessive force against Melbourne commuters, as part of a damning report into the issuing of transport fines.

In one video, inspectors perform a running tackle on a commuter, forcing him into a seat with "considerable force then possibly grabbing him by the throat", at a station at Lilydale, east of Melbourne.

The officer involved resigned, but later re-applied for a position with the new rail operator Metro.

In another incident, at Ringwood station, also east of Melbourne, CCTV vision shows an authorised officer pushing two youths from a moving train and onto the platform.

The officer involved in that case resigned, and following a police investigation, was charged with two counts of recklessly causing injury.

Ombudsman George Brouwer says the transport operators often failed to refer such violent incidents to the department.

His report into ticket inspectors has made 14 recommendations, including improved screening of candidates.

The new Transport Minister, Terry Mulder, says the report is disappointing but not surprising.

He has blamed the former government for the problems, and says reporting of incidents will be improved.

"To have in place a robust mechanism for all the reporting it appears to me that has completely and totally broken down," he said.

Mr Brouwer says authorised officers should issue fines directly.

But Mr Mulder says there is a good reason that strategy was dropped.

"Authorised officers were subject to abuse and assaults and that's why they went down the pathway of ensuring non-conformance reports."

The Department of Transport has accepted all but one of the recommendations.

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Melbourne Age --> Brouwer says too much force not the ticket

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Herald Sun --> Ticket inspectors playing rough on Melbourne's trains

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From the Melbourne Age click here!

Inspection set-up 'fails commuters'

Inspection set-up 'fails commuters'
Richard Willingham
December 23, 2010

PUBLIC Transport Minister Terry Mulder is ''very concerned and disappointed'' by the excessive force used by public transport ticket inspectors, uncovered in a damning Ombudsman's report.

Mr Mulder said the entire system had fallen down, which had let down the public and those inspectors who had behaved appropriately.

Mr Mulder was responding to a report that found ticket inspectors had used excessive force on commuters and been given jobs without proper screening.

Ombudsman George Brouwer's most serious finding involved the failure of public transport operators to refer to the department cases in which ticket inspectors may have used excessive force.

''It could involve a handful of authorised officers or a group of authorised officers,'' Mr Mulder said. ''The simple fact is the information has not been put forward to identify who they are and to curb the level of behaviour.

''The vision [of the assaults] shocked me and the real concern that I had was that those people involved could have been involved in other incidents.''

Mr Mulder said he would take full responsibility for the issue.

He blamed the lack of oversight by the previous government. He has demanded the department give him an annual report on all 14 of the report's recommendations.

Metro chief executive Andrew Lezala said the company's 350 authorised officers did a good job under ''very difficult'' circumstances.

''Sometimes human beings make mistakes, and when that happens we rigorously follow that up and take disciplinary action if necessary,'' Mr Lezala said.

He said only one incident in the report had happened under Metro's management - Metro took over the running of Melbourne's trains from Connex in November last year - which had prompted Metro to review its process.

He said better training and police checks would be implemented and he denied Metro was deliberately trying to intimidate people into buying tickets.

Despite saying in May, when he was opposition transport spokesman, that there was no doubt the government used speed cameras for revenue raising, Mr Mulder yesterday refused to comment on his government's 32 new speed cameras to be installed in the new year.

He said it was not his portfolio to comment on.