DAY IN THE LIFE - Working night and day

Editorial: Danielle Ford

Photography: Jesse Wray-McCann

They've been a constant fixture at train stations during the dark of night, but now Protective Services Officers are seeing the light of day across the public transport system.

Daytime shifts and adaptable patrols for Protective Services Officers (PSOs) are a cornerstone of Victoria Police’s Integrated Transport Security Model (ITSM).

Launched in February 2018, the ITSM enabled PSOs to undertake flexible, intelligence-led patrols across the public transport network, allowing them to be in areas where police intelligence shows there is a need for the safety boost.

So while 1,202 Transit PSOs cover 216 metropolitan train stations and four regional rail hubs in Bendigo, Traralgon, Ballarat and Geelong from 6pm until the last train, ITSM PSOs can be deployed to any transport station or major event as needed.

In the lead up to the 2019 Australian Open tennis tournament, the powers of ITSM PSOs were expanded, allowing them to patrol tram stops and bus interchanges and board moving trams, in addition to their existing capabilities of being able to patrol train stations and onboard moving trains.

PSOs Katherine Salik and Brian Murray chat with a commuter while onboard a tram heading back to Melbourne's CBD.

One year on from this expansion, Police Life walked alongside a team of these adaptable PSOs while on shift to discover how their everexpanding footstep is making an impression on safety in the city.

At 7am on a Monday morning, a time when they would usually be winding down after a regular night shift, a team of PSOs is gearing up and getting ready to start their day.

The team, consisting of PSOs Michael Murray, Brian Murray, Katherine Salik and Natasha Hynes, are one of two ITSM units rostered on for a day shift, covering Melbourne’s CBD and surrounding suburbs.

“The number of ITSM units we have working changes depending on the day, what events are on and the number of stations or routes intelligence data is showing as current hotspots for crime and anti-social behaviour,” First Class PSO Michael Murray says.

The first stop for this team’s shift is Southern Cross Station, a sprawling transport hub welcoming trains from metropolitan railway lines, as well as regional centres across the state. In addition to trains, Southern Cross Station is also home to a major coach terminal, with buses from across the state and country coming and going.

Arriving just after 7.30am, the peak morning rush is in full swing and thousands of people are moving through the station.

“A lot of people think the night is the main time for incidents to happen, but things can happen at any time,” PSO Salik says.

“When you’ve got thousands of people moving through a station in a short period of time, it’s important to have measures in place in case anything happens.

“It gives people that extra sense of safety and that’s what we are there to do.”

As the PSOs patrol the station, a team of Authorised Officers responsible for ticket compliance on the public transport network is situated at platform exit gates, checking commuters’ tickets.

While PSOs can assist Authorised Officers in their role, PSO Brian Murray said his team’s job isn’t to hand out fines to passengers for not having a valid ticket.

PSO Brian Murray checks in with an Authorised Officer at Southern Cross Station to make sure there are no issues with commuters.

“All PSOs work closely with Authorised Officers and provide support if they need it should a person become irritated or aggressive while being issued a notice,” he says.

“But we maintain a separate role. We aren’t at stations, or on-board trains or trams, to check tickets or hand out fines.”

“Our role is all about safety and deterring and responding to crime and anti-social behaviour. It's not about checking tickets.”

After the peak-hour rush period ends, the team boards the 96 tram to St Kilda.

PSOs Katherine Salik, Natasha Hynes and Brian Murray patrol a tram stop in St Kilda while working an ITSM shift, which allows the officers to board moving trams and trains.

“Being able to board trains and trams really allows us to engage with a wider range of people across a large portion of the public transport network,” PSO Salik says.

“It gives people that sense of safety, not just at train stations, but wherever they travel because they know we could be onboard anywhere, at any time.”

The 96 route is one PSOs have been tasked to travel during the shift due to a recent spike in reported crime on it.

“We use data from our partner agencies along with internal data to pinpoint where our ITSM PSOs are most needed,” Transit Safety Division Acting Senior Sergeant Wes Pinchen says.

“This allows us to reallocate them at any time to meet real-time demands.”

This flexibility proves useful for the team on this particular Monday morning, when a call from security at Southern Cross Station comes through regarding a suspicious person. The team boards a tram and heads back to investigate.

“We work to ensure there’s a strong relationship between ourselves and security at Southern Cross,” PSO Michael Murray says.

“Issues can arise at any time, so we work with them to make sure they can contact us quickly so we can get there to help as soon as possible.

“We also work to build a strong relationship with not only the specialised transit police we work with, but also the local police in areas we travel to.”

PSO Michael Murray talks with business owners while patrolling in St Kilda.

It’s not just being mobile that is helping people feel safer on public transport, according to PSO Michael Murray.

The former police officer said the expansion of hours at certain train stations is also a huge benefit.

“The ITSM has allowed for the expansion of hours worked by PSOs at these stations and has resulted in a reduction of offenses at most of them,” he said.

The launch of the ITSM was the result of the recruitment of more than 100 additional transit PSOs, funded through the State Government Community Safety Statement.