Fewer bus drivers being injured thanks to protective shields, city says

New data released by the City of Ottawa suggests acrylic barriers installed on buses are minimizing the risk of serious physical assaults on drivers, but their union says people have found other ways to harass them. 

OC Transpo logged 49 bus operator injuries resulting from assaults in 2022, with 36 happening while the employee was sitting behind the wheel. 

Of those none were deemed serious — "a first in recent history," according to Duane Duquette, deputy chief safety officer.

The transit authority introduced the shields to address a spate of violent attacks on drivers that included being slapped, groped and punched. It believes they're working. 

"The operator barriers have had a direct impact not only on the frequency, but also the severity of the assaults as they limit a person's ability to contact the operator," Duquette told members of the city's transit commission on Thursday.

All drivers have been trained to stay in their seats during these situations, Duquette added, in case they escalate. 

While injuries sustained by drivers at the wheel dropped from 93 in 2018 to 36 last year, that period also saw a significant drop in the overall number of people taking public transit.

Average ridership in 2022 was 52 per cent of pre-pandemic levels.  

Assaults include threats, aggressive behaviour

Ten of the injuries occurred while the operator was driving a type of bus that wasn't fully outfitted with protective shielding and won't be until this July.

But three dozen other injuries happened despite the driver being behind a barrier. 

"How exactly are they happening?" asked Barrhaven East Coun. Wilson Lo, a former OC Transpo driver.

"Is it the gap at the front of it, above it?" 

Duquette said it's possible someone could throw something like a coffee cup through the gap, but underscored the broad definition of assault includes things like verbal abuse, harassment and aggressive behaviour. 

Staff also explained that some of the gaps are intentional to ensure the driver's view is not impeded. 

Growing issue across Canada 

Transit systems across the country have been grappling with an increase in violent assaults. 

The Amalgamated Transit Union has called for the formation of a national task force to address a situation it sees as "way out of control." 

Clint Crabtree, president of ATU Local 279, said while he's heard from members that barriers put a stop to more extreme examples of passenger hostility, riders have found other ways to take out their frustrations. 

"Now that they can't spit at the operator, they're spitting at the shield," he said. "The aggression is still there, and the aggression may be worse than it was before the pandemic." 

The shields should only be one part of a broader strategy to protect drivers, said Crabtree, who'd like to see transit enforcement officers be more visible on buses and at stations.

He said that would show passengers that assaults of any kind will not be tolerated. 

"Nobody wants to go to work and have to endure that type of abuse," he said. "It's just unacceptable and it needs to stop."