Dublin Bus drivers have called for the wearing of face masks to be made mandatory on public transport.
The Government advised the wearing of face coverings in enclosed public spaces ahead of the implementation of Phase 1 of the easing of lockdown restrictions on Monday, May 18.
But the wearing of masks has not been made a legal requirement, which drivers fear is a threat to the safety of staff and passengers.
Driver Irma Robertson said the current guidelines are "not good enough".
"It's not going to work," she told RTE.
"We need mandatory wearing of face masks which would ensure confidence in passengers wanting to travel and also for the drivers.
"We're on the frontline and we need safety for ourselves and the safety of the passengers."
In order to comply with social distancing measures buses can currently only carry a maximum of 17 passengers.
Driver Alan Cullen said this means he often has to drive past passengers at bus stops.
He said: "You're trying to count people getting on and seeing how many you have on.
"Sometimes you have to stop the bus and go upstairs to have a look and see how many you have.
"Sometimes you have to drive by people because you can't have anyone standing."
With more people set to return to work as lockdown restrictions ease, Sean Yates of the National Bus and Rail Workers Union believes the drastically reduced capacity of buses will make life difficult for commuters
"The NTA put out a notification on Monday asking people travelling on people to please wear a face covering but don't ask - tell," he told the national broadcaster.
"Wear the face covering, everybody is safe, capacity could increase on buses and people can get to work."
