Concerns raised over Garda numbers in Ferrybank

Gardai numbers in Ferrybank and South Kilkenny have been described as "critically low" by a member of Waterford City and County Council.

Highlighting his concern over the matter, Fianna Fáil's, Cllr Eamon Quinlan, said that while the area has one Sergeant and seven Gardaí assigned to it the reality is that two Gardaí and one patrol car, at times, serve an area that has around 24,000 people, as it encompasses a region from Piltown, in south Kilkenny, to Rosbercon, just outside New Ross, in Co. Wexford, to Ferrybank in Waterford.

The area in question takes in a number of towns and villages along with Ferrybank, an urban centre of more than 6,000 people that acts as a suburb of Waterford City on one side, and the largest urban townland in Co Kilkenny, outside of Kilkenny itself.

Commenting on the matter to Waterford News & Star and waterford-news.ie, Cllr Quinlan said: “My understanding is that this very large area, including a section of Ferrybank that falls under my remit, has an allocation of one Sergeant and seven Gardai. Separate shifts, as well as days off in the week means at times there is literally only two Gardai in one squad car."

"Rosbercan, over by New Ross, to Piltown, just shy of Carrick-on-Suir, takes 35 minutes in a car to get across," said Cllr Quinlan.

"It is a significant expanse, and this area means that if Gardai are responding to calls in one of these areas, Ferrybank is left without a unit present," he added.

He went on to say: "The best people can hope for is to call Ballybricken Garda Station in Waterford City and hope officers can be dispatched across."

"This can be dependent on resources that are available at the time," he said.

"This has led to repeated reports from members of the public to councillors and other community representatives that repeated acts of anti-social behaviour, are going undealt with, or by the time Gardai arrive, the perpetrators are long since gone," he added.

Locals in Ferrybank have long complained that the division of the townland between Waterford and Kilkenny has given them the worst of both worlds rather than the best of both worlds.

Cllr Quinlan said the Garda station in Ferrybank, located in the Rockenham Estate, is seen as an ideal base of operations to cover the area but is closed far more often than it is open. "Road works and intense traffic make it very difficult for Garda cars to get from Waterford City over the Edmund Rice Bridge and up the Dock Road in a timely manner," he said.

"The development of the North Quays has also been raised," he added.

"A half billion euro investment into an area with a bare thin Garda presence at times."

Cllr Quinlan said the issue wasn't going to resolve itself and he highlighted the fact there are an additional 350 apartments planned as part of the North Quays development which will lead to up to another 1,000 people living in Ferrybank, aside from the new estates planned on the townlands edges.

"The numbers, in terms of population are drastically increasing," he said.

"A new conference centre, hotel, offices and so on, are all in the works [and] the allocation of Gardaí to the area is wholly inadequate for the needs of the area and having such a large urban environment, where the only Gardai in a car are up towards the Wexford or Tipperary border, responding to a call is completely unacceptable," he added.

Cllr Quinlan said he felt he had no option but to highlight what he described a Garda resource deficiency. 

"Those engaged in anti-social behaviour, intimidating public spaces and members of the public are already aware of the Garda shortfall," he said.

"They may not know if its one Garda, or two or three working at any one time, but they do know we are so stretched that they have plenty of time to do what they want to do and leave the area before Gardai can respond," he added.

"As part of a community initiative, myself and other local representatives will be writing to the Garda Chief Superintendent requesting a meeting with a delegation of locals representing residents, businesses, sports clubs etc. to highlight the needs of the local area."

Cllr Quinlan went on to comment: "In my opinion sufficient Gardai need to be assigned to ensure that even if a car is dispatched to Rosbercan or Piltown, there are Gardai in another squad car still present in Ferrybank."

"There must always be a Garda presence in Ferrybank, based at their Garda station," he said.

"That knowledge, that there is Gardai in the heart of the Ferrybank community at all times, ready to respond, will do a lot to convince those engaged in anti-social behaviour that Ferrybank is too hot for them to continue," he added.