Regina bus drivers call for action amid rising violence on transit
Data from Regina Police shows a 74% rise in transit incident calls since 2019
Bus drivers in Regina are raising concerns about a sharp increase in violence on city buses, saying they feel unsafe and unsupported.
Data from the Regina Police Service (RPS) says RPS received 202 calls about transit incidents since 2019, a 74 per cent rise from 2019. Meanwhile, RPS said there were 32 reports of physical or verbal violence on transit in 2024, up from nine in 2019 — a 255 per cent increase.
In total, 140 charges have been laid since 2019, including 18 violent crime charges last year, RPS says.
Sukh Gainda, a longtime transit driver and president of the union representing city bus operators, said violence and harassment against drivers are becoming more frequent, and often happen without warning.
"Every day it's going up, and the most shocking thing is it's always unprovoked and random," Gainda said in an interview with CBC's The 306 on Wednesday.
Gainda recounted a personal experience in downtown Regina last October. He said he was attacked by a group of three youths near a transit washroom.
"I took my key out of my pocket and I was open to try to open that washroom lock and suddenly I felt something hit on my back very solid. I turned around and there were three youths. As soon as I turned around to see what I got hit with, one of them spat at me," he said.
Gainda said he reported the incident to police, but has yet to receive any follow-up.
"They just gave me a piece of paper and told me to write my statement. I've written my statement on that paper, gave them back. After that, I think three and a half, four months passed. Nothing heard from them. Nothing from them, nothing from my management," he said.
RPS said it has taken steps to address the issue, including increasing police presence downtown and launching the alternative response officer (ARO) program.
"This is a collective and ongoing effort," police said in an emailed statement.
Meanwhile, the City of Regina says it has installed security cameras on all buses, put in operator barriers and provided two-way radios for direct access to police.
"Regina Transit is actively exploring a recommendation from the Transit Master Plan which considers peace officers on transit buses to improve operator and passenger safety," the city said in a statement to CBC.
Passenger bans are also in place for repeat offenders, though Gainda said they need to be enforced more strictly.
"There's no consequences to the passengers," he said.
Gainda said many bus drivers feel unsupported and unsafe. He says that about 60 to 70 percent of drivers have come to him with concerns about their safety and some are even considering leaving the job altogether.
"There's lots of the drivers who moved from here and they want to do something else, not even thinking of driving a bus. Maybe going back to driving a truck or starting driving an Uber or cabs," he said.
He also criticized what he sees as a lack of clear guidelines for how drivers should handle violent situations, saying the training provided is inadequate.
"It's not any professional training. It's like you telling a kid, 'OK, don't talk to strangers.' That's the kind of training we have," he said.
Gainda is calling on the city and police to take stronger action before the situation escalates further.
"We should not wait for something bad to happen to any of the operators," he said.
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With files from Shlok Talati