'Like the Wild West out there': Winnipeg transit union raises concerns after gun pointed at bus driver

The executive vice-president of Winnipeg’s transit union is raising concerns over an increase in violent incidents on buses after an operator allegedly had a gun pointed at him early Friday morning in front of police headquarters.

According to Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 1505’s Derek Hanley, around 12:30 a.m., a bus driver picked up a group of passengers along his route towards Graham Avenue in the city’s downtown core.

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Hanley said as the operator turned onto Graham Avenue, the group got into a fight. The driver told him one person pulled out a gun and began pointing it at other passengers before running up to the front of the bus and pointing it at the operator.

“He pointed the gun at the shield and said, ‘Let me off this bus right here.’ It was right in front of the police building,” Hanley recalled the driver telling him.

After he was let off the bus, the operator said the individual ran towards Portage Avenue.

“He couldn’t believe how fast it happened and what had just happened,” Hanley said.

“He was just hoping, ‘Please don’t shoot me.’”

Hanley said the driver was shaken up after the incident and will be taking a leave from work.

While Hanley said reported incidents are down this year compared to the same time last year, the severity is worsening.

“The acts of violence on transit are rising,” he said. “It’s like the Wild West out there. Everybody seems to be armed.”

Hanley also said most of the people committing crimes on public transit aren’t paying the fare.

“When they don’t pay a fare, they feel empowered,” he said.

Hanley also pointed to another incident that took place earlier in the week, where an operator had picked up a person in distress who then chased the driver out the window of the bus.

“These are daily events that happen on the buses,” he said.

When it comes to curbing the issue, Hanley said there needs to be better enforcement and a way for riders to report crimes in real time.

“There's a lot of different technologies out there that can be utilized for these kind of crimes,” Hanley said, pointing to Toronto’s SafeTTC App, where passengers are able to report crimes anonymously. “We're actually looking at possibly bringing it here to Winnipeg, but like everything else, it costs money.”

Hanley also pointed to Winnipeg Transit’s fare education campaign, but said more needs to be done.

“This is not a free service. You have to pay to ride this service. But with that needs to come enforcement,” he said.

No arrests have been made in Friday’s incident. Winnipeg police are investigating.