TRAFFIC wardens in Limerick have had to endure verbal and physical attacks, including being spat at, punched, and having cars driven at them by angry motorists.
The startling facts about how wardens are treated in the course of doing their job emerged as Limerick City and County Council launched a trial this week of body-worn cameras for local wardens.
James – a traffic warden in the city. who preferred not to publish his second name for safety reasons – said that he and his colleagues have experienced being hit, spat at, grabbed, and held up against a wall with angry verbal abuse and threats thrown at them.
James says that a big part of the job involves giving people directions, advising tourists where to go to eat and drink, and what to see.
In their function as wardens, he said, “we try our best to create a safe environment for everyone in Limerick, motorists, pedestrians, cyclists, trucks”.
Speaking in a post on X (formerly Twitter), James continued, “unfortunately, it’s human nature. People don’t like getting fines. Some people take it well, others not so well.”
“There have been many instances where people become verbally abusive or threatening, right up to physical abuse and using their cars to drive towards us …. Nobody goes to work to be abused and threatened.
“You can disagree with us as much as you like, but we don’t deserve to be threatened, abused, and physically harmed in the course of our duty.”
A Council spokesman told the Limerick Post that wardens endure an average of 15 “extreme incidents” a year, not including exchanges with frustrated motorists who argue over being given a fine.
These include verbal threats, physical assaults, being head-butted and spat at, as well as the incidents in which they are physically injured to the point where it becomes a matter for the Gardaí.
A Council spokesperson confirmed that there have been a number of prosecutions for attacks on wardens, with at least one matter currently before the courts.
The body-cams have been put out on the streets after two and a half years of research and consultation with the public, business owners, and other stakeholders.
The cameras do not record unless the warden believes there is a threat, a which point they issue a warning that they are going to record. The camera is activated with the press of a button, which is audible and a red light flashes, recording audio, video, and GPS data.
Senior Executive Engineer for the Council, Liam Brown, told the Limerick Post that an “upward trend” in assaults and violent incidents against wardens has been observed over the last four years, prompting the trialing of the cameras.
He confirmed that wardens “have had to take time off work” due to injury as a result of violent incidents.
He said it is hoped the introduction of the cameras will “reduce the number of these incidents” and provide evidence that “Gardaí may be able to use for prosecutions”.
“They begin recording after announcing that they are about to do so, but if someone is coming at them, punching and attacking, they are not obliged to announce, they just press record.
“The wardens have no access to the footage themselves. They cannot view it, copy it, or alter it. It must be downloaded to a secure device in the Council offices and can only be accessed by authorised personnel,” Mr Browne said.
“Anecdotally, we’ve heard from Waterford (County Council) and the Gardaí that they experienced a 90 per cent reduction in incidents,” Mr Browne said of other organisations which have adopted body-cam use.
