Meeting over resumption of Belfield bus service

DUBLIN BUS will meet members of University College Dublin and the Garda on Thursday to discuss the resumption of its night service to Belfield.

Services after 8.30pm on the number 10 and number 3 routes were withdrawn several weeks ago because of anti-social behaviour from passengers who boarded at the university.

Students union education officer Paul Lynam said last night: "While we would condemn any assault on a bus driver as disgraceful, and think the perpetrator should be punished, we would see any cutback as unacceptable.

"What happened is terrible and unfortunate, but you have to look at the bigger picture - it is a vital resource for students."

Dublin Bus says problems with unruly students usually come to a head at this time of year and are compounded by the large number of people boarding at the campus late in the evening. The night services was suspended following a meeting with trade unions, UCD and the relevant authorities.

Bus drivers had complained of passengers drinking on board and being verbally abusive. One employee was allegedly punched in the face. "The safety of our staff and passengers is of utmost importance to Dublin Bus and the temporary withdrawal of services is common practice in areas where the company experiences incidents of anti-social behaviour," a spokeswoman said.