Three youths were arrested at the scene and referred to Youth Aid, police said.

Last month, police arrested a 37-year-old man wanted in connection with 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 October 23 attack.

Parmar said he met a bus driver in September who was badly assaulted by fare dodgers and took his concerns to AT.

“Since then, a bus contractor has told me that AT has been repeatedly warned that its lax fare avoidance policy is leading to violence.

“In 2020, AT introduced a de facto ‘free ride’ policy when it removed cash from buses and advised operators that passengers with no balances on their Hop cards should be allowed to travel regardless.

“The entrepreneur tells me that the AT policy means that some people now think they are entitled to take the bus for free. This leads to disputes with bus drivers and means that unstable or intoxicated individuals use the bus as free transport or shelter. These situations increase the risk of attacks on drivers and passengers,” said Parmar.

Stacey van der Putten, AT’s director of public transport and active modes, said fare evasion was not tolerated and AT had never had a “free travel” policy.

Those who evade the rates face instant fines of $150 and court fines of up to $1,000.

“What we have in place is ‘de-escalation training’ for our bus drivers which is designed to reduce the risk of confrontations with passengers

“Bus drivers should remind passengers about the need to pay, but if things get heated, we don’t want drivers to be attacked because of fares,” said van der Putten, who estimated that fare evaders make up about 3% of boardings.

Last week, Auckland Tramways Union President Gary Froggatt said NZ Bus had agreed to consult with employees, informing them of the safety protocols in place and that they were no longer required to monitor Hop cards or fares and recommending not to get involved in arguments with passengers for their own safety.

He said if someone refuses to tag or pay a ticket, Froggatt said, bus drivers are instructed to print a no-fare ticket that goes to AT.

Drivers will no longer be held liable for passengers who fail to pay their fares, Froggatt said.

Parmar said bus drivers should not be responsible for coping tariff dodgerssaying AT needs to change its free transport policy, whether that’s tougher ‘no fare, no ride’ signage, a mobile team of AT officers responding to fare dodgers or more police support and private security guards.

“It is clear that we need stronger security measures. AT must meet with bus contractors, drivers and the police to agree firm actions.

“I have requested a meeting with TA to discuss these issues and am ready to facilitate a meeting between all affected groups if necessary.”

A spokesman for Kinetic Bus – Auckland’s largest bus service provider, which operates 650 buses and has 920 drivers across its NZ Bus and Go Bus operations – said it was not the contractor Parmar was referring to.

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